Advances in cloud computing, wireless communications and the internet of things

There is a growing amount of data generated by a variety of devices in the Internet of Things (IoT). Sharing economy applications can leverage such data to provide solutions of high societal impact. Several technologies together enable the collaborative use of data through software services. This chapter describes the key developments in these technological areas. In particular, it describes advances in cloud computing that have resulted in new software architectures and deployment practices. Such improvements enable the rapid creation and deployment of new services on the cloud. Next, it highlights recent developments in wireless networks that allow heterogeneous devices to connect and share information. Furthermore, this chapter describes how IoT platforms are becoming interoperable, thus fostering collaborative access to data from diverse devices. Finally, it elaborates on how the described technologies jointly enable new sharing economy solutions through a case study on car sharing.