Philips joins hands with Alibaba for a digital lifestyle

Philips Consumer Lifestyle and the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group are exploring cooperation and development opportunities in the connected and intelligent field based on the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between them, the companies said.

According to the MOU that Philips and Alibaba signed in May, Alibaba will provide cloud computing services for data storage while Philips is providing smart products and solutions to customers and consumers in China. The two companies will also cooperate in data exchange and analysis to be better informed of product needs, purchasing behaviors, user feedback and development trends, so they can better identify consumer needs. They will also explore business cooperation and development opportunities in intelligent healthcare, smart city and connected lifestyle.

Based on this MOU, they again signed a framework agreement in October on IT infrastructure service, under which Aliyun, a subsidiary of Alibaba Group, will provide Philips with services including cloud servers, cloud storage, cloud safety and data processing.

The smart air purifier, which was recently launched in China, is Philips' first intelligent and connected product supported by Aliyun, and it's also the first time that Philips Global locates HealthSutie on a cloud server outside Europe. Tortured by allergic and respiratory problems, the residents in big cities are increasingly wishing to have control over the air quality at home. Via the App on their smartphones, users can have a real-time knowledge of urban air quality index (including PM2.5 index) provided by the China Meteorological Administration, as well as the air quality at home. The air purifier can also push alerts to its users, so they can remotely control the product to improve the indoor air quality at any time and in any place.

Digital technology has created new opportunities for all business fields. Internet technology and big data are also reshaping the world and people's lives.

Pieter Nota, Global CEO of Philips Consumer Lifestyle, said when meeting Daniel Zhang, COO of Alibaba recently, "Philips is an active player in the digital era. Going digital is one of the priorities in Philips' 2017 Strategy for China."

Zhang with Alibaba Group said, "Cloud computing and big data will change the world significantly. Philips could leverage the cloud system and bring more convenient and smart services to people with its intelligent healthcare, energy-efficient lighting, and consumer electronics solutions."