Samsung allies with data firm

A woman in her 30s passes a restaurant and a message pops up on her smartphone, welcoming her and displaying a menu, her favorite food, prices, discounts and events.

A man with high blood pressure frequently checks his health data and related information from a hospital on his smartphone and smartwatch. Health organizations connected with the hospital feed related information and activities.

These are just the few of the services Samsung Electronics hopes to provide with its Internet of Things (IoT) and big data analyzing technology. The Korean tech giant on Monday in Berlin signed a strategic alliance with SAP, a German company that specializes in big data analysis. Under the agreement, SAP will provide corporate mobile solutions that could be used in the retail, oil, gas, finance and health care industries, among others.

The idea is to maximize the real-time data analysis solution from SAP to fit Samsung Electronics devices.

The two sides agreed to develop a service tool that would comply with Galaxy Note functions, including the S pen and multi-window.

Eventually, the two companies will establish an ecosystem through an open platform for Android mobile apps. The Korean company has made the IoT, which transmits and receives information through expanded network connectivity, a priority.

Essentials for a successful IoT business are technology to analyze and utilize big data, cloud technology to store and share large amounts of data, and a network that connects a range of devices is essential.

Company Vice Chairman Jay Y. Lee recently has been busy making business trips in order to secure these key elements. He has met with the CEOs of Microsoft and VMware, both companies that specialize in cloud data storage and access.

“Cooperating with SAP, we will be able to provide our corporate clients with the best environment and contribute to the ongoing evolution of the IoT market,” said Kim Seok-pil, head of the Samsung Electronics global B2B center.

The tech company believes the deal will help not only secure its position in the IoT market, but expand its B2B business.

One of the first steps is installing SAP’s Care Circle, a consumer health app, on Samsung Electronics wearable devices, including smartwatches. It will create a community of medical institutions, patients and families that could improve patient care through the exchange of information.

An industry official acquainted with the business said Samsung is targeting the application of this system at medical institutions, including its own in May. That will be the starting point, and from then on the company plans to adopt a mobile pay system using the same IoT technology in the retail industry and then venture into the financial market through mobile banking solutions, both of which are designed to attract corporate clients.

BY LEE SO-AH [ojlee82@joongang.co.kr]