IT, ICT, IoT… all of these are important words that describe the technology fields that support industry. Even if you have a rough understanding of what these terms mean, it can be difficult to explain the differences between them and how they relate to one another. In this article, we will introduce the meanings and differences between these words.
What is IT?
IT is an abbreviation for “Information Technology” and is a general term for technology that combines and utilizes communications such as the Internet with information devices such as computers.
The Internet began to spread to the general public after the release of Windows 95 in 1995. Between 1999 and 2000, ADSL and other broadband services for general individuals began to spread, mainly in urban areas.
The term “IT revolution” first appeared around 2000. Yoshiro Mori, who was the Prime Minister at the time, mentioned the “e-Strategy” in his policy speech in the Diet, which led to the enactment of the IT Basic Law and related bills. However, during the policy speech, Mori also mispronounced “IT” as “it.” “IT revolution” won the New Words and Buzzwords Award in 2000.
In 2006, the Policy” was launched, inheriting the ideas of the e-Initiative, with the aim of realizing a ubiquitous network society. FTTH using optical fiber also became common, ushering in an era of high-speed communications. In addition, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications renamed its previous “IT Policy Principles” to the “ICT Policy Principles” in 2005. Around this time, the term ICT began to be used instead of IT.
ICT is almost synonymous with IT
ICT is an abbreviation for “Information and Communication Technology.” Overseas, ICT is more commonly used than IT.
Like IT, ICT is a broad term that can refer to not only the internet and computers, but also a wide range of digital technologies, services, and businesses, including smartphones, big data, social media, and smart speakers.
The difference between ICT and IT is that ICT tends to be used more to show how to utilize the Internet and computer-related technologies and to show future visions. Looking at how it is used in government agencies, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology often use ICT, such as in “ICT Growth Strategy,” “ICT Regional Revitalization Award,” and “ICT Education,” while the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry often uses IT.
What is IoT?
IoT is an abbreviation for “Internet of Things.” It refers to a mechanism that enables things to be recognized, measured, and controlled remotely by connecting them to the Internet and exchanging information with each other.
Traditionally, the main things that could connect to the Internet were computers and mobile phones. Later, smartphones, game consoles, music players, and televisions also began to connect to the Internet.
As IoT becomes more commonplace in the future, the variety of connected things will explode in number, incomparable to today. Currently, IoT products that are beginning to spread include various electronic devices such as smart speakers, IoT home appliances such as lighting fixtures and air conditioners, and network cameras that can monitor pets while you are away. In addition
, vehicles and transportation such as cars, buses, and trains, sensors and cameras installed in retail stores, medical equipment in hospitals, production equipment and robots installed on production lines in factories, inspection machines in warehouses, agricultural robots and self-driving agricultural machinery that are active in farmland, agricultural drones, wearable devices worn by visitors in theme parks, etc. will be connected to networks and play important roles in various fields.
What is the difference between IoT and IoE?
There are two terms related to IoT.
The first is IoD (Internet of Digital). IoD refers to digital devices that are designed from the beginning to be connected to the Internet. Examples include computers, smartphones, and game consoles. Corporate mission-critical systems and servers are also types of IoD. The
second is IoH (Internet of Human). IoH means that people, like things, are connected to the Internet. In other words, it is a system in which humans communicate with and operate things via computers and digital devices.
And as a higher concept than IoT, IoD, and IoH, there is the term IoE (Internet of Everything), which means “the Internet of everything.”
IoE is the final stage of IoT. It refers to services and businesses that are premised on connecting not only things, but also people, processes, data, places, and everything else to the Internet, as well as the technologies that make this possible.
For example, let’s imagine a smart bed system in the medical field that can monitor the pulse rate, respiratory rate, and sleep/wake state of hospitalized patients. With IoT, it is possible to connect and manage the data obtained from this bed to a nurse call system or an electronic medical record database.
However, in a world where IoE is widespread, the types of data sent from beds will increase and the data connected to them will also become more diverse. This will create an environment in which treatment optimized according to changes in the patient’s condition is automatically performed. If the data obtained there is accumulated, it is expected that treatment methods will eventually evolve to the next stage.
IT, ICT, IoT, and IoE will continue to expand and impact every industry and field. In a few years, new services and business models that are completely different from those of today may be born. By understanding the differences between them and keeping a close eye on their trends, we may be able to see a vision of the future.