Thread Group Expands Membership Tier Options

26 Mar 2019

SAN RAMON, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--To better address the demand for a secure, interoperable networking layer to connect Internet of Things (IoT) devices across platforms and ecosystems, The Thread Group today announced a strategic restructuring of its membership tiers and benefits.

To make it easier for companies to explore the feasibility and benefits of integrating their technologies into the growing array of Thread-enabled products, the group added an Implementer Tier to its membership options.

The new Implementer Tier will appeal to module and turnkey solution providers that are buyers of Thread Certified Components, as well as companies wanting to adopt and ship Thread-enabled technology. Implementer-level member benefits include:

  • Access to Thread’s intellectual property rights (IPR), typically without royalty payments
  • Ability to certify compliant components and products, and use the Group’s certification logo, by inheritance
  • Ability to purchase the Thread test bed, and the option to purchase the Thread test harness

For companies that simply want access to both current and draft Thread specifications, and want to stay up-to-date on the Group’s initiatives, the Affiliate membership fee will be reduced to $750 per year for new and renewing members. Implementer-level members enjoy the Affiliate benefits, as well as the points above for $5,000 per year.

“Companies across silicon, platforms and ecosystems build on Thread because it’s widely available, and solves the networking challenges wireless IoT components and devices currently face. Now, our new tiers make it easier for product developers -- who choose Thread to improve interoperability and infrastructure utilization in low power wireless -- to bring products and solutions to market more quickly and more cost-effectively,” noted Grant Erickson, president of Thread.

Thread is delivering on the promise of IoT. Specifically, it’s the only networking layer protocol currently deployed across residential IoT applications to seamlessly connect low-power devices from multiple manufacturers and maintain a permanent Internet connection. The opportunity to shape the next Thread specification opens to Group members at its Spring Meeting, from April 2-4, 2019, in San Diego, Calif. Those interested in defining new use cases and driving the necessary specifications and requirements are welcome to join its growing roster of member companies and be a part of these important discussions.

“Thread’s foundation of IP, robust end-to-end security measures, and reliable mesh architecture is a great fit for our commercial building efforts,” said Klaus Waechter, Global Standardization Manager at Siemens. “With our deep expertise in this space, being able to contribute use cases to help shape future versions of the Thread specification is invaluable because it enables us to strategically expand the breadth of our portfolio’s offerings.”

In commercial environments, Thread has seen a boost in interest following partnerships with the Zigbee Alliance and KNX for application framework options and Siemens’ endorsement last June. Specifically, members value Thread because it gives systems more flexible functionality planning, end-to-end security features, easier maintenance and lower cost. Plus, it seamlessly scales to reliably and securely connect hundreds of wireless products in a home environment to thousands in commercial buildings.

“We chose Thread because it’s the only IP-based networking protocol currently delivering value across IoT applications globally,” said Bruno Johnson, CEO at Cascoda. “Thread networks cover more ground and capture more data with higher reliability at a reduced cost, ultimately making IoT solutions more intelligent. This -- and the Group’s globally available ecosystem -- appeals to both smart home and commercial IoT applications, as well as adjacent markets, from precision farming to environmental monitoring.”

Other benefits of Thread membership include:

  • The opportunity to shape the Thread specification. Thread Group’s membership will start defining new use cases and driving the necessary specifications and requirements at its Spring Meeting April 2-4, 2019 in San Diego, Calif. Join the Thread Group now to be a part of these important discussions.
  • Partnerships with other standards organizations and alliances to advance connectivity and interoperability for all devices connected to the Internet of Things. The Thread Group’s current liaison partners include Continental Automated Buildings Association (CABA), EEBus, Fairhair Alliance, KNX, Linaro, NFC Forum, Open Connectivity Foundation (OCF) and Zigbee Alliance.
  • The Thread Ecosystem, which includes product and platform vendors delivering the reliable, interoperable experiences needed to drive growth, while its IP foundation allows vendors to maintain a direct connection to their device – and their customers. Specifically:
    • The constantly expanding set of Thread certified components, which reduce risk and development time for IoT applications.
    • The new Dotdot 1.0 specification and Dotdot over Thread certification program, which is the result of years of collaboration with the Zigbee Alliance, gives smart product developers a mature, open, and certifiable interoperability language over a low-power IP network. To start building with Dotdot over Thread, product vendors can work with members from DSR, MMB Networks, NXP Semiconductors, Silicon Labs and Ubilogix.
    • Google and Nest continue to enable the Thread market with updates to OpenWeave, their open-source application layer for connected consumer products, and OpenThread, an open-source implementation of Thread.
    • The wide range of platforms supporting Thread technology: Express Logic’s ThreadX Real-time Operating System (RTOS), OCF’s IoTivity Lite application framework for constrained devices, Particle.io’s wireless mesh networking development kits, RIOT open-source operating system for networked, memory-constrained systems, and Zephyr’s open-source RTOS.

About the Thread Group

Formed in 2013, the non-profit Thread Group is focused on making Thread the foundation for the internet of things in homes and commercial buildings. Built on open standards, Thread is a low power wireless networking protocol that enables direct, end-to-end, secure and scalable connectivity between IoT devices, mobile devices, and the internet. And, because Thread is IP-based, it seamlessly integrates with many environments, apps, devices and clouds. Thread Group provides a rigorous certification program to ensure device interoperability and a positive user experience. Thread is backed by industry-leading companies including Apple, Arm, Google/Nest, Nordic Semiconductors, NXP Semiconductors, OSRAM, Qualcomm, Schneider Electric, Siemens, Silicon Labs, Somfy, and Yale Security.

For more, please visit http://www.threadgroup.org, follow us on Twitter @TheThreadGroup, and connect on LinkedIn.