German telecommunications operator Deutsche Telekom (DT) has signed its first narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) roaming agreements with several European operator partners, the carrier said in a release.
The cooperation with Swisscom, Telia Company and Vodafone brings mobile IoT roaming services to a further nine European countries. Deutsche Telekom currently offers NB-IoT roaming in nine of its own markets including Germany, The Netherlands, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Greece, Poland and Croatia.
With the new NB-IoT roaming agreement, the service will be shortly available in Swisscom’s network in Switzerland and Liechtenstein; Telia Company’s networks in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden; as well as Vodafone’s networks in Spain, Italy, Germany, The Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
The German operator noted that additional NB-IoT roaming agreements with further operator partners are expected in the coming months.
DT also highlighted that the roaming agreements address customer demand for international coverage and service continuity for their fast-growing number of IoT devices, adding that seamless coverage is a key factor for companies looking to manufacture or deploy mobile IoT devices across multiple markets.
Roaming is essential for many industries such as industrial asset tracking, where containers may need to be tracked across several international borders. Other examples come from the smart metering or waste management industries, where manufacturers usually produce smart meters or bin sensors in one country but require a single connectivity solution for these IoT devices to work in various markets.
“Our customers need a sustainable roaming environment for their mobile IoT deployments to deliver a consistent service across international borders. This allows them to benefit from economies of scale as they continue to expand their business,” said Rami Avidan, responsible for IoT at Deutsche Telekom. “We are working hard to help accelerate the adoption of NB-IoT roaming in Europe and beyond. It is great to see the interoperability of our and our first partners’ networks now in place.”
Deutsche Telekom’s Connectivity Portfolio will be updated in the coming weeks to reflect the new roaming capabilities.
