The Context API in the OMA Next Generation Service Interface

Application Platforms and related APIs are becoming the foundations for emerging eco-systems of online applications/services. End-users are more and more choosing devices and services based on the available offers in the respective eco-system. Attracting and retaining application developers and end-users to a networked platform is nowadays more and more depending on the features available to developers in the form of APIs and (e.g. cloud-based) execution environments rather than on the actual portfolio of services. The Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) Next Generation Service Interfaces (NGSI) is one cornerstone of evolving a network operator towards an application platform provider with open APIs. Within NGSI, the Context API enables access to a plethora of rich information about users, places, events, and things - all made available by or brokered through the network operator. This paper explains the OMA NGSI Context API and its rationale, describes the operations, and discusses typical use cases and benefits it can bring to operators and application developers.