In the course of the year 2007 the Information Society and Media Directorate-general of the European Commission （DG INFSO） and the European Technology Platform on Smart Systems Integration （EPoSS） followed convergent paths – the former towards a common policy framework for Radio Frequency Identification （RFID） and the latter towards smart systems that are able to take over complex human perceptive and cognitive functions and frequently act unnoticeably in the background. Both initiatives met at a crossroads – the “Internet of Things”。 On one hand， the Commission， in association with many sector actors， established that RFID was one major vector towards embedded intelligence in things making them smarter that is able to do more than they initially promised. On the other hand， work in EPoSS demonstrated that RFID technology could provide added value to smart systems integration in logistics and many other industrial sectors. Using RFID technology， everyday objects will become ‘smart objects’ – elderly and disabled people will be supported by intelligent devices; the close tracking and monitoring of goods in the food chain will improve food safety; smart industrial goods will store information about their components and their use; waste disposal management will be switched from today’s mass-oriented approach to a more efficient individual recycling process.

At a time when the notion of ‘Internet of Things’ was still rather undefined and debated mostly in academic circles， DG INFSO and EPoSS realised that they were sharing the same vision of an Internet of Things as the result of several shifts – from systems to software-based services， from passive RFID tags to active RFID tags and wireless sensors， to the mythic Semantic Web， from identification to real-time ‘sense and response’， from exposure to privacy， and from protection to trust. The rise of ubiquitous services and the integration of the network within the objects of everyday life – each of us is permanently surrounded by some 4000 objects – constitute the next step of the development of the Internet. This evolution towards the Internet of Things raises tremendous opportunities for Europe‘s industry as Internet of Things related technologies have the potential to drastically transform the sector of production and services altogether， while it also unveils new policy challenges， especially privacy， trust， security， governance， and therefore highlights the need to define and implement policies that respect the principles and values shared by the citizens of the European Union.

Against this background and a shared commitment to trigger a Europe-wide dialogue on the requirements and options relating to the Internet of Things， DG INFSO and EPoSS organised a “founding workshop” in February 2008 –

Beyond RFID – The Internet of Things. The present report draws the conclusions of the workshop and incorporates the views and opinions of many experts who were consulted over the six months that followed the workshop.

DG INFSO and EPoSS look forward with confidence and enthusiasm to meeting the challenges of the Internet of Things， especially by working together and with all other organisations and experts willing to develop plans to ensure the potential of the Internet of Things for our economies and society can be fully met.