This Executive Summary provides a brief résumé of the ITU report “The Internet of Things”， which has been specially prepared for the World Summit on the Information Society held in Tunis， 16-18 November 2005. It includes a selection of tables， illustrations and analysis of the full report， which can be purchased online or in printed copy. For further information， please visit the website at：

www.itu.int/internetofthings. This report is the latest in the “ITU Internet Reports” series， which includes the following titles：

? The Portable Internet （2004）

? The Birth of Broadband （2003）

? Internet for a Mobile Generation （2002）

? IP Telephony （2001）

? Internet for Development （1999）

? Challenges to the Network： Telecommunications and the Internet （1997）

Each of these publications is available for purchase online from the ITU website at： www.itu.int/osg/spu/publications for CHF 100. Printed copies are also available from the ITU Sales Service

（www.itu.int/publications， Fax： +41 22 730 51 94， e-mail： sales@itu.int），

with reductions for ITU Member States and Sectors Members， and for purchasers from the least developed countries （LDC）。

The full report （approximately 130 pages） gives an in-depth introduction to the Internet of Things and its effect on businesses and individuals around the world. It contains information on key emerging technologies， market opportunities and policy implications. A 65-page statistical annex to the report presents the latest available data on over 200 economies worldwide.

The report was prepared by a team from the ITU Strategy and Policy Unit （SPU）。 Much of the original research was carried out for workshops under the ITU New Initiatives Programme， with generous funding from a number of ITU Member States， including MIC （Japan）。

The views expressed in the report are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of ITU or its membership.