The Internet of things is expected to consist of 212 billion devices by the year 2020, including PCs, smartphones, tablets, wearables, and a variety of home and industrial appliances, according to market researcher International Data Corp. But to achieve that, chip makers and others in the electronics food chain must agree upon how to connect wireless devices together. The companies want to create a communications framework based on industry standard technologies to wirelessly connect and manage the flow of data among devices. They want the communications to work regardless of form factor, operating system, or service provider.

http://venturebeat.com/2014/07/07/intel-and-other-gadget-makers-create-a-standards-consortium-for-connecting-the-internet-of-things/