ARM Holdings plc today announced that it has acquired Stream Technologies LLC, a software provider focused on helping companies optimize how their “internet of things” devices communicate.

Sensors and other connected endpoints can generate massive amounts of data when deployed in large numbers. Stream’s software provides the ability to configure how those endpoints transmit information, as well over what channels, based on the operational requirements at hand.

Different environments call for different means of communications. A utility looking to deploy power surge sensors throughout its electrical grid, for example, might find that certain faraway locations lack reliable cellular coverage. In such situations, Stream’s software provides the ability to connect endpoints to a satellite constellation or another alternate network.

ARM plans to integrate Stream’s technology into its Mbed IoT Device Management Platform. The offering, which is built around the chip maker’s Mbed connected-device operating system, comprises a collection of cloud services designed to ease the task of operating large-scale IoT deployments.

Hima Mukkamala, the head of ARM’s IoT Cloud Services division, detailed the company’s vision for the toolkit in a blog post. He wrote that acquisition of Stream is meant to create an “end-to-end IoT platform for managing, connecting, provisioning and updating devices.” A big part of this one-stop-shop value proposition is that Stream’s software is built to work with practically every kind of IoT system, as well as many different network types.

Providing value-added device management tools is one the strategies ARM is pursuing in a bid to maintain its dominance in the IoT market. Processors based on the chipmaker’s designs can be found in most smartphones and tablets, as well as a sizable portion of the other internet-enabled hardware out there.

Another way ARM has been working to maintain its edge is by developing increasingly specialized processors. Earlier this year, the company unveiled Trillium, a line of chips engineered with artificial intelligence in mind.

More recently, ARM introduced a tamper-resistant processor geared toward high-priority devices. The Cortex-M35P includes several security mechanisms that can prevent hackers from extracting sensitive information even if they manage to gain direct physical access to a system.

Image: ARM