MarketScale Industrial IoT 01/10/19: Beacon Technology & Private LTE

This week’s episode of the MarketScale IoT podcast features conversations with two industry experts who are using their knowledge to bring innovation to the industry. Correspondent Shelby Skrhak caught up with David Gilley, the Assistant Vice President of Business Development and Strategy at Encore Networks. He discusses the use of private LTE networks by energy utility providers around the world. These providers are harnessing LTE capabilities in-house for better oversight.

Also on this week’s show, MarketScale correspondent Sam Mosher chatted with Vice President of Brand Marketing at Allrecipes, Esmée Williams. She discusses how beacon marketing has been a massive success for Allrecipes and how others can learn from their success.

Remember, you can follow along with all of MarketScale’s coverage from CES by clicking here to go to our Software & Technology page.

Private LTE Networks Are a Brave New (Wireless) World

When a wireless network is responsible for controlling the complex infrastructure that’ll get the power back on in a natural disaster, performance and reliability are critical. That’s why electric utilities and other infrastructures are looking to control their own environment with private LTE networks. It brings the performance and capability of LTE technology from commercial carriers like AT&T and Verizon, and brings that in-house for better control and operability.

David Gilley is the Assistant Vice President of Business Development and Strategy at Virginia based Encore Networks. He’s part of the burgeoning emergence of private LTE networks being used in energy utilities across the globe. He sat down with Marketscale to discuss the trend and explain the intricacies of this brave new world.

“When you look at what we do at Encore Networks, we make wireless gateways,” Gilley says. “Our gateway talks today on the AT&T and Verizon networks, and now private LTE networks. That is the communication interface back to everything that’s going on around the grid, and that’s what makes the smartgrid smart. If there’s a downed line or transformer, I need to manage that, and the utility company needs to be reactive to that. That’s where these devices come into play.”

Understanding Beacon Marketing

Description: Location-based beacon marketing is quickly gaining popularity. It’s already used in stores like Macy’s and CVS and venues such as the San Francisco 49ers’ Levi’s Stadium. Shipments of Bluetooth Low Energy beacons are expected to exceed 400 million units in 2020. Swirl Networks found over 70 percent of shoppers say beacon-triggered messages increase their likelihood of buying an in-store product. With a statistic like that, it’s not hard to see why stores are adopting the technology.

But physical stores aren’t the only ones using beacon marketing. Brands like Allrecipes are using beacons, too. Allrecipes partnered with Marc’s Grocery Stores in Ohio to inspire in-store meal ideas using beacon technology and Allrecipes’ Dinner Spinner app. As a result, the app’s monthly view statistics increased by millions. Item sales and overall purchase sizes at Marc’s Grocery Stores increased as well.

Esmée Williams, Vice President of Brand Marketing at Allrecipes, joins us this week to talk about the development, implementation and success of its beacon marketing, as well as how others can follow their strategies to find success with beacons.

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