All told, 2024 was something of an annus horribilis for the cellular IoT sector, with consolidation and divestitures on the back of zero sales growth. But it could prove to be a whole lot worse than expected, it seems. “It's possible that a pessimistic...
Vodafone has a new deal with Saudi tech and telecoms outfit Mobily to expand its IoT coverage in Saudi Arabia. The deal is between the UK-headquartered operator’s enterprise IoT arm (Vodafone Business IoT / Vodafone IoT) and the Saudi firm, and sees its customers...
NXP Semiconductors has agreed a deal to buy US edge AI chipmaker Kinara for $307 million. Kinara specialises in energy-efficient neural processing units (NPUs). NXP said it will combine the firm’s edge NPUs and AI software more formally into its own industrial and IoT...
Ericsson has been confirmed (by Ericsson) as the key vendor for the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) to deploy private LTE across “parts of” 68 counties in Texas, in the US. It follows news last month that LCRA had taken a new licence with...
Either it has taken a year to get going, or else it has actually expanded – but US private 5G specialist Celona has stuck out another press note to proclaim its partnership with Riyadh-based telecoms group STC (Saudi Telecommunication Company; stylised stc) in the...
The Wi-SUN Alliance has unveiled a product certification programme for Wi-SUN based smart meters, smart sensors, and sundry IoT modules development kits. Certification will ensure Wi-SUN devices, compliant with the FAN (Field Area Network) 1.1 wireless mesh specification, work with other products on the...
KDDI-owned virtual network operator (MVNO) Soracom is supplying out-of-the-box global IoT connectivity into a pair of new developer evaluation kits from France-based IoT chipmaker Sequans. The new modules are available in two variants, with either dual-band LTE-M and NB-IoT connectivity, or single-band Cat 1bis...
A new government-funded scheme in the UK is seeking to apply IoT sensing and AI sense-making to lamb farming. The UK Agri-Tech Centre, an independent organisation for agricultural innovation, is working with farm equipment manufacturer David Ritchie Agricultural (Ritchie) to prototype an automated IoT/AI...
Something and nothing, here, but worth a look: the team at CCS Insight – which crosses over, individually, with the Global mobile Supplier Association (GSA), and so has double-dibs on private 5G thinkery – has polled 500-odd IT “decision-makers” in key industrial sectors (manufacturing,...
KDDI-owned virtual network operator (MVNO) Soracom has launched an integrated SIM (iSIM) solution for global IoT deployments. It adds a third SIM option to its developer portfolio, to go with its card-type physical SIMs and chip-style embedded eSIMs. It is offering a new iSIM-compatible...
Chip maker Semtech Corporation has had its EM8695 5G RedCap module certified by the FCC and PTCRB, the comms regulator and the telco review board in the US, and has also passed tests on mobile operator AT&T’s network. The unit is poised for “carrier...
Sigfox parent UnaBiz has convened a new ‘Sub0G’ ecosystem collective to develop smart IoT labels for the low-end of the IoT tracking market, targeting logistics and distribution sectors. French electronics manufacturer Linxens, Dutch semiconductor company NXP Semiconductors, and UK printed battery maker Zinergy have...
We have done this exercise before; but that was back in 2022, and it is high time to update the list, especially with all the UK activity around private 5G in early 2025. So here goes: a fairly comprehensive list, in reverse-chronological order (we...
France-based cellular IoT chip maker Sequans Communications has acquired Swiss firm Advanced Circuit Pursuit (ACP) for an undisclosed fee. ACP produces integrated circuits, radio frequency (RF) transceivers, and systems-on-chip (SoCs) for cellular IoT and 5G mobile broadband modules. The deal will help Sequans’ reduced-capability...
Germany-based Cumulocity, a pioneer brand in the industrial IoT space, has emerged from its long-time stewardship by business software and data analytics firm Software AG, including through its latter supervision by US private equity outfit Silver Lake, as an independent entity after a management...
UK-based tower company and network sharing specialist Freshwave has deployed a ‘portable’ private 5G network at the National Robotarium in Edinburgh, Scotland, to test and develop commercial robotics solutions for Industry 4.0. The pair have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to collaborate on...
Another private 5G forecast for you (or your marketing departments): cumulative spending on private 4G/5G networks in the US will exceed $3.7 billion between 2024 and 2027, reckons market research firm SNS Telecom & IT. New spectrum and new technology means the market is...
The US Department of Defense (DoD) has appointed Federated Wireless, sub-contracting JMA Wireless for radio (RAN) infrastructure and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) for core network software, to deploy its “first commercial” private 5G network. The new $6 million deal, billed as a 42-month sustainment...
So private 5G has made the national news in the UK. Except that’s not the news. The news, and mainstream coverage, is that mobile operator Vodafone has been appointed by Oxfordshire County Council in the UK to deploy and manage a private 5G network...
Siemens has expanded coverage of its private 5G product for Industry 4.0 customers, both in terms of its radio support and commercial availability. The new version covers larger industrial areas, now supporting up to 24 radio units, each with capability to supply 5,000 square...
Swiss IoT module maker u-blox is to phase out its loss-making cellular IoT business, the firm has said. The division has over 200 employees; jobs are expected to go with its closure. It made revenue of CHF 27 million ($29.6 million) in the first...
The Utility Broadband Alliance (UBBA) and the 450 MHz Alliance (450A), working differently to develop private 4G and 5G networks for utility operations, have signed a deal to collaborate on the same. The former has focused mostly so far on private LTE (4G) for...
Dutch chip firm NXP Semiconductors has signed a deal to buy Austria-based automotive software solution provider TTTech Auto for $625 million. TTTech Auto, with around 1,100 engineering staff, produces safety systems and middleware for software-defined vehicles. The firm, including its management team and intellectual...
As Greil Marcus said of Bob Dylan, somewhere between Nashville Skyline and Blood on the Tracks: what is this shit? Because the newest ‘magic quadrant’ study from Gartner, which holds a Bob-like influence in the heritage pop canon of telecoms and IT research (partly...
