Trusted distributed
computing
Data is the key to any business and Intertrust’s suite of computing
products looks to better manage and understand it, as CEO Talal
Shamoon explains to New Electronics
Intertrust was founded over 30 years and was a pioneer in digital
rights management (DRM). Originally a small R&D and licensing
company it is now a global leader in the development of trusted
computing products and services, licensing, and standardisation
and is now working with some of the the world’s leading brands to
help them better protect and use their data.
As early as 1990, Intertrust invented the concept of trust via the
Internet and has been responsible for a number of core technologies
that govern how we manage and secure Internet-based commercial
transactions.
Today, it now manages all forms of digital transactions across a
number of sectors from transport to financial services.
A key sector for the company is the energy sector, which is facing
significant disruption because of the heavy focus on renewable
sources of energy.
Utility companies’ business models for residential customers
are becoming increasingly obsolete and they need to adapt to new
distributed energy resources (DERs) like rooftop solar PV units, wind
turbines, fuel cells and various other technologies.
Research suggests that 40% of consumers will use DERs by
2027 and that figure is expected to increase to 60% in 2050.
“With the advent of ‘big data’ and the Internet of Things (IoT), the
smart city is becoming a reality and has resulted in the generation of
vast amounts of data,” explains Intertrust CEO, Talal Shamoon.
“Energy companies and utilities now have a massive opportunity
to access and use data to provision new services and improve their
operations, as well as achieve better environmental outcomes.”
In 2015 Shamoon had a long and, at the time, unexpected
meeting with the German energy giant RWE.
“We discussed how it could remain a major player in the face of
massive industry transformation and our discussion turned into a
prescient conversation, that lasted more than two hours.
“We talked about how connectivity was driving disruption across
the energy sector and how these innovations would not just rescue,
but fundamentally reshape the energy sector. While the meeting
generated an incredible business partnership, it also led to the
formation of a new business philosophy and strategy that we now
call Data-Driven Energy.”
Whether energy companies change or not, change is coming,
according to Shamoon. As data becomes the currency of tomorrow’s
energy companies not only will they have to manage that data
securely, they will also face increased competition from the likes
of horizontally integrated multinationals like Amazon and Google,
Shamoon argues.
“These organisations could end up buying wholesale electricity
and giving it to consumers for free, in exchange for access to
customers’ data and the gold mine that represents.
“Facebook soaks up vast amounts of data, not just about what
you do on Facebook but through their apps on your Android phone.
They are able to collect all sorts of information from where you go,
what you listen to, to what kind of car you drive.”
As this market develops and more devices are connected so
16 10 September 2019 www.newelectronics.co.uk
/www.newelectronics.co.uk