The world of beacons has just gotten more convenient. Ars Technica reports that Google will now be launching a new, cross platform, open-source format for Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons, called Eddystone. It was created to combat the problems in existing beacon services and unlike its predecessors, it is easily compatible with both iOS and Android devices.  

This new beacon technology will be able to support multiple frame types, which will perform a wide array of functions. Google stated that existing beacons can be tailored to fit the Eddystone format, which will mean that different beacon vendors will be able to use the same system for varying purposes. NFC World reports that Bluetooth beacons are one-way communications, where the goal is to provide a means to send data through non-invasive push notifications.

Eddystone is equipped with a feature called Ephemeral Identifiers (EIDs), a measure where the beacon's ID changes frequently for security protection. This ensures that only clients authorized to use the system will be able to do so.

"The name 'Eddystone' might sound a little weird, but Google says it's named after the Eddystone Lighthouse in the UK," Ars Technica writes. "The motif is that beacons guide users and apps in the real world the same way lighthouses guide ship captains in the night. Being an open source project, they wouldn't want to name it 'Google Beacon.' It fits in well enough with the other non-obviously-branded open source Google projects like Android, Chromium, or Dart. This also isn't something they need to sell to the general public, just beacon OEMs and app developers."

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