Google is working on intra-device, Internet-of-Things (IoT)-friendly communication with a functionality called Copresence. The feature will let Android and Apple iOS devices detect and communicate with each other for the purpose of exchanging photos, music, files, messages, contacts and the like.
According to the Google-watchers at Android Police, a recent teardown shows that location information, Bluetooth or Google’s proprietary “whisper” functionality could all be used as methods for devices to authenticate with one another, with Wi-Fi to be used for the heavy-lifting when it comes to porting info between devices.
Allowing two devices to sense and speak to each other is something that the Samsung Galaxy line has famously made its “thing.” The fact that Google is working on something similar for Android in general is no surprise. But the addition of iOS support is interesting, if it’s true, and would intimate that the app-based approach is looking to tear down barriers between content porting and reduce fragmentation within device ecosystems for doing things like streaming content to other nearby devices, as Google does now with its Cast functionality, and as Apple does with Airplay.
“A tipster who took a peek into the latest Google Play Services APK found [images] related to Copresence setup and onboarding,” the Android Police noted. “They show happy devices exchanging data, authenticating, and just being happy in general.”
Apparently, Copresence will be arriving in the “coming weeks,” according to the blog’s unnamed source. And that’s a hope that is being underpinned by the discovery of a Copresence API for Chrome within recent developer documentation. Also, Google has been granted a patent for Copresence functionality.
The functionality may be a fun addition for app developers and a step towards seamless connectivity and communications between devices within the IoT, but Google will still need to address two looming elephants in the proverbial room when it comes to this: security and privacy. So far, details are scant on that front.
Edited by
Maurice Nagle
