FIWARE – A proposal for the future

The aim of the high-level FI-WARE project is to build a core platform for the Future Internet

The aim of the high-level FI-WARE project is to build a core platform for the Future Internet. This platform will substantially increase the global competitiveness of Europe's ICT economy by introducing innovative infrastructure for creating and delivering versatile digital services, providing high service quality and security guarantees.

FI-WARE will provide a solid foundation for the Future Internet, stimulating and nurturing a sustainable ecosystem for:

• Innovative service providers, who will be able to deliver new applications and solutions meeting the requirements established in emerging projects.
• End users and consumers actively involved in content and service consumption, as well as their creation.

Building this ecosystem will strongly influence the deployment of new wireless and wired infrastructure and promote innovative business models and their subsequent acceptance by end users.

FI-WARE will be open, based on components called Generic Enablers (hereafter GE), offering reusable, readily accessible functions across countless application areas.

The FI-WARE project's principal objective is to identify and specify GE, together with developing, demonstrating and specifying implementations of the identified GE. Any application containing GE comprises a set of components and offers capabilities and functionalities that can be flexibly customised, used and combined across many different application areas, enabling advanced and innovative internet applications and services. The FI-WARE architecture therefore encompasses the specification of the Enablers, their relationships and the properties of the whole.

The core platform is provided by the FI-WARE project and is based on GE associated with the following technical areas:

• Cloud hosting – the foundational layer providing system, storage and network resources, in which services are provisioned and managed.
• Data and context management – effective access to, processing and analysis of massive data volumes to transform them into valuable knowledge available to applications.
• Applications / service ecosystems and frameworks – the infrastructure for creating, publishing, managing and consuming Future Internet services throughout their life cycle, addressing all technical and commercial aspects.
• Internet of Things (IoT) service – the bridge between Future Internet interface services and resource-constrained devices.
• Interfaces to networks and network devices – open interfaces to networks and devices, providing the connectivity required by services delivered through the platform.
• Security – mechanisms ensuring that service delivery and use meet security, reliability and privacy requirements.

In short, FI WARE aims to respond to the demands of both end customers and businesses:

• End customers want easy access to, and use of, applications that can effectively help them in everyday situations.
• Businesses and organisations want to be closer to customers to offer a more compelling experience and better service. They therefore seek more personalised interactions and greater user participation at every stage of product and service life cycles.

Developing and operating these services requires new methods, technologies and tools to accelerate time to market, establish value-added services and simplify access to relevant resources and capabilities, for example through the Internet of Things. Additional business service requirements include reduced ICT provisioning complexity, scale, global availability and compliance with the security requirements of customers and legal authorities.

A suitable Future Internet platform would contribute greatly to meeting these business customer demands. This is why FI WARE has arrived to respond to all these present and future needs.