Philips, together with the Swedish multinational provider of communications technology and services Ericsson, is developing smart street lighting. The companies launched their innovative new connected LED street lighting model at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona yesterday.
Cities are growing fast, thus increasing mobile data traffic. The need for mobile data is expected to grow ten times by 2019. Cell phone operators worldwide are struggling to keep pace with growing demand for mobile data.
According to Philips, street lighting takes up about half the municipal electricity bills. Energy efficient LED lighting would reduce that amount drastically. Philips and Ericsson combine the benefits of mobile connectivity and LED lighting in a ”lighting-as-a-service” model for cities.
