Does your multiple listing service have a system where you can open a lockbox with your cell phone? If so, you have already experienced what is known as “The Internet of Things.” Over the next decade look for this trend to completely reshape both your business and personal life. What is the “Internet of Things?” High-tech entrepreneur Kevin Ashton, who coined the term “Internet of Things,” defines it the following way:“People have limited time, attention and accuracy — all of which means they are not very good at capturing data about things in the real world.

And that’s a big deal. We’re physical, and so is our environment. … “You can’t eat bits, burn them to stay warm, or put them in your gas tank. Ideas and information are important, but things matter much more. Yet today’s information technology is so dependent on data originated by people that our computers know more about ideas than things.

If we had computers that knew everything there was to know about things — using data they gathered without any help from us — we would be able to track and count everything, and greatly reduce waste, loss and cost.“We would know when things needed replacing, repairing or recalling, and whether they were fresh or past their best. The Internet of Things has the potential to change the world, just as the Internet did. Maybe even more so.”How will the Internet of Things show up in your life?

Here are five examples that are already in the marketplace. Supra eKey Professional This technology won the 2013 Inman Innovator Award for Most Innovative Use of a New Technology. Supra went beyond just allowing agents to access lockboxes through their mobile devices; it integrated the ability to store MLS data on those devices, link listings to Google maps, as well as other productivity features. –

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http://www.inman.com/2013/08/19/5-products-taking-real-estate-high-tech/#sthash.TO22P4Nh.dpuf