It's no secret that indoor positioning technology isn't ideal - anyone who's tried to pinpoint their location while inside an office, convention center or other large building can attest to that.
Now 22 tech companies, including Nokia, Samsung and Sony Mobile, have banded together to form the In-Location Alliance, a Justice League for the victims of poor indoor positioning everywhere.
The member companies forming the In-Location Alliance have vowed to make indoor positioning services more accurate, efficient, mobile, and easy to implement and use, according to a press release from Nokia.
Sony followed up with another press release, stating that the Alliance was formed "with the goal of driving the innovation and development of indoor positioning."
An indoor mapping dream team
The In-Location Alliance is comprised of companies that range from phone and other device manufacturers to mapmakers and semiconductor experts.
In addition to Nokia, Samsung and Sony, here are the other participating companies:
- Broadcom
- CSR
- Dialog Semiconductor
- Eptisa
- Geomobile
- Indra
- Insiteo
- Nomadic Solutions
- Nordic Semiconductor
- Nordic Technology Group
- NowOn
- Primax Electronics
- Qualcomm
- RapidBlue Solutions
- Seolane Innovation
- TamperSeal AB
- Team Action Zone
- Visioglobe
Their solutions will reportedly be based on Bluetooth 4.0 and Wi-Fi technologies.
Following pilots from Alliance member companies this year, the indoor location solutions could be implemented in some devices as soon as 2013, according to official reports.
The hero this industry needs
"The aim of the In-Location Alliance is to act as a pioneer opening up new business streams for indoor environments," reads a press release credited to the Alliance itself in Nokia's press release.
"Indoor positioning is the next frontier of mobile services, offering great opportunities to enhance consumer experiences."
There are certainly some high-profile firms involved, though it seems two of the companies who would have the most interest in improved indoor mapping tech - Google and Apple - are conspicuously missing.
TechRadar reached out to the Alliance to find out whether these companies were approached about joining up.
In the announcement, the Alliance does note that it's open to any company "who is ready to further investigate business opportunities in indoor location based services and see value and benefits in industry collaboration," so maybe it's not too late.
