The Bluetooth Industry

 
The Bluetooth Industry
The entire Bluetooth industry—all the companies developing products and services based on
the Bluetooth wireless technology—is centralized in an industry group called the Bluetooth
Special Interest Group (SIG). The Bluetooth SIG not only creates and updates the technical
specifications, it also makes sure products adhere to the technical standards and promotes the
Bluetooth technology to consumers all around the world.
Any examination of the Bluetooth industry, then, must begin with a closer look at the
Bluetooth SIG.
The Bluetooth SIG
The Bluetooth SIG is a consortium of companies that work together to define and promote the
Bluetooth wireless technology. Members of the Bluetooth SIG create the specifications
behind the technology—specifications that must be adhered to by any company adopting the
Bluetooth wireless technology.
The Bluetooth SIG serves as a forum for developing and enhancing the Bluetooth
Specification, provides a vehicle for interoperability testing, and functions as the primary
instrument for generating market awareness and promoting the technology, worldwide. The
common goal of all Bluetooth SIG members is to revolutionize connectivity for both personal
and business mobile devices—by making ubiquitous the Bluetooth wireless technology.
The acceptance of the Bluetooth SIG has been immediate and universal. Today there are more
than 2000 member companies, including the leading companies in a wide variety of
industries.
Note The Bluetooth SIG is not a legally incorporated business entity, nor is it a formal
standards body. Rather, it is an organization, governed by legal agreements between the
member companies, chartered to define and promote the Bluetooth wireless technology.
It is supported by the financial contributions of the member companies.
The Companies
For any company that wants a piece of the Bluetooth market, membership in the Bluetooth
SIG is a necessity. For those smaller companies (and larger ones, too), it helps that basic SIG
membership is free.
To join the Bluetooth SIG, a company must fill out the membership application form at the
Bluetooth SIG Web site (www.bluetooth.com/sig/membership/membership.asp). All
members of the SIG receive a royalty-free license covering all applicable intellectual property
patent rights—in essence, a free license to develop products that incorporate the Bluetooth
technology.
The companies in the Bluetooth SIG represent a number of different industries, including:
• Automotive
• Computing (hardware, software, and peripherals)
• Consumer electronics
• Industrial
• Networking
• Photography
• Semiconductor
• Telecommunications
• Test and measurement equipment
There are four primary levels of membership: founding, promoter, associate, and adopter. The
founding and promoter levels are the province of the larger industry players; a new member
can join at either the associate or the adopter level.
Table 3.1 details the key differences between the Bluetooth SIG’s associate and adopter
memberships:
Table 3.1: Associate and Adopter Member Privileges
Activity Associate Member Adopter Member
Marketing meetings and reflector Yes No
Architecture Review Board votes, meetings, and
reflector
Yes No
Regulatory meetings, reflector, and database Yes Yes
Test meetings and reflector Yes Yes
Working group chairs, meetings, and reflector Yes No
Working group drafts Yes Yes
Expert group chairs Yes No
Expert group meetings and reflector Yes Yes
Founding and promoter members have access to everything—all the groups, committees, task
forces, meetings, and reflectors (communication forums for the various groups and
committees)—and have first access to all developing standards and other available
information.
Founding Members
The Bluetooth SIG was formed in May of 1998 by the following five companies:
• Ericsson Mobile Communications AB
• IBM Corporation
• Intel Corporation
• Nokia Corporation
• Toshiba Corporation
These founding members also serve as members of the promoter group, and are represented
on the Program Management Board and most major groups and committees.