Texas Instruments Inc. (TI) announced the company’s strong endorsement of the ZigBee Alliance’s recent announcement to integrate Internet Protocol (IP) and open standards. The plan to incorporate global IT standards from the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) will allow continued growth of smart grid applications beyond the smart meter with the proven ZigBee Smart Energy public application profile.

“The ZigBee Alliance decision to expand its leading wireless networking standard to incorporate IP standards will solidify and accelerate developments and innovation of rapidly growing smart grid applications,” said Laurent Giai-Miniet, General Manager of TI’s Low-Power RF business. “TI is a leading supplier in this market segment and will continue to invest in solutions for smart energy. TI is also the only supplier that can deliver solutions for ZigBee in all market segments with ZigBee PRO, RF4CE, Smart Energy profile and IP.”

“Our Energy Sector members have been looking for a coupling of ZigBee’s established, respected and mature wireless standards with native IP capabilities and IETF support,” said Bob Heile, Chairman of the ZigBee Alliance. “This move addresses that need and will further position ZigBee as a leading solution for a variety of smart grid efforts underway around the world.”