State & Local Government Policy, Business and Technology

From Research to Results: The Substance Behind Smart Cities

Data-Smart City Solutions: Many have theorized that tools like broadband networks and Internet of Things (IoT) sensors— technologies that provide access to information through telecommunications—can improve the lives of residents. However, few have gone directly to residents to understand how these tools, commonly referred to in academic literature as smart city information and communication technologies (ICTs), truly affect city dwellers. The authors of “The effects of successful ICT-based smart city services: From citizens' perspectives” attempt to do just that, surveying residents to make an empirical case that smart city ICT applications do indeed improve quality of life. However, the article concludes that integrating residents’ needs and preferences into application development processes is critical to creating an effective smart city infrastructure.

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