Cellular IoT Takes Off; AT&T and Nokia Join Forces

June 12, 2018

Cellular IoT is growing fast, according to the Ericsson Mobility Report, which cause it to increase its forecast. By 2023, cellular IoT connections are now estimated estimated to reach 3.5 billion cellular.

“This growth is set to impact industries and businesses across many different markets,” the letter from the pubisher, Fredrik Jejdling, EVP and head of business area networks, reads. “This change will require the combined effort of many industry players and regulators to align on spectrum, standards and technology. A lot is already happening.”

In other IoT news, using Nokia’s Worldwide IoT Network Grid (WING), AT&T and Nokia have agreed to develop, test and launch IoT services, which will cover transportation, health, manufacturing, retail, agriculture, utilities, consumer electronics and smart cities.

Commercial deployment starts later this year. WING’s core network assets are expected to be available in more than 20 countries across Europe, Asia, North America, South America, and the Middle East by the first quarter of 2020. The collaboration will help set the stage for the evolution to global 5G.

AT&T offers global IoT solutions through a combination of owned and third party-provided capabilities that enable superior network performance in more than 200 countries and territories. Connected devices are deployed and controlled easily and quickly in multiple countries using a single, global SIM.

AT&T’s cloud-based Multi-Network Connect platform will simplify connectivity and platform capabilities for AT&T’s use of Nokia WING. Multi-Network Connect lets businesses manage IoT devices across multiple cellular and satellite networks, operators and regions through a single portal.

Nokia WING offers a fully integrated, global managed service for IoT connectivity enablement for mobile network operators, providing innovative features, optimizing investments and reducing time to market. Working with WING, AT&T will speed the delivery of IoT services on a global scale and drive emerging IoT applications.