Today’s electric vehicle (EV) charging experience can be frustrating. The first hurdle is finding a working, available charging station. Next comes waiting in or by the vehicle for 30 minutes or so, which can feel like a waste of time. The annoying charging experience is one reason why as many as one in five drivers trade in their EVs for gas-powered vehicles.[1]

Charge point operators (CPOs) that deliver a better experience stand to gain a competitive edge in a market poised for spectacular growth. The 500,000 public EV chargers installed in 2021 brought the worldwide total to nearly 1.8 million.[2] They are not enough. To keep up with demand, Europe will need 9 million public chargers by 2035, a 400% increase over the 340,000 public chargers available in 2022.[3] Investors are listening: analysts estimate cumulative global investments in charging to exceed $360 billion by 2030 and $1 trillion by 2040.[4]

Growth and profitability hinge on smart cellular connectivity management

Imagine a great charging experience. It starts with working chargers. Dependable authentication, usage metering, and payment. A mobile app that shows charger location, real-time availability, and even dynamic pricing. SMS alerts on charging status (e.g., charging, 80% charged, 10 minutes remaining, charging complete) while the customer enjoys a coffee next door.

EV charging stations of the future will transform the 30-minute ho-hum charging experience into something drivers actually enjoy.[1] Equipped with cellular Wi-Fi routers, the charging station can provide a Wi-Fi hotspot for customers to work or watch the news from their car. Interactive displays to learn about local attractions—a source of advertising revenues for the station operator. A service to update the vehicle’s software while it charges.

Underpinning all of these customer experiences—today’s and tomorrow’s—is a reliable, secure network. Cellular networks are often more practical than wired networks for charging stations. They avoid the expense of wiring. They reach virtually everywhere, including highway service areas. Connecting a new charger to the cellular network can be as simple as inserting a SIM card. And many locations are served by multiple cellular networks, providing resilience if one network has an issue.

Challenges of cellular connectivity management

The ease of managing cellular network connectivity affects both the customer experience and profitability. Must-haves include:

• Service reliability. Out-of-service chargers or payment systems take a bite out of revenue. They also irritate customers who planned their trips around charging.

• Automated onboarding of new chargers. Individually provisioning large groups of chargers is time-consuming and error-prone, slowing down deployment.

• Automated rate-plan management. Assigning the right rate plans to hundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands of chargers—and then managing them—is an arduous task. Getting it wrong can lead to data overage charges that wreak havoc on projected profit margins.

• Insights into usage trends. Manually exporting cellular usage data to other enterprise applications is a tedious, time-consuming process and can postpone insights.

• Security. Unlike enterprise servers, EV chargers are out in the open, making it easier for bad actors to steal SIMs. Without a way to immediately detect and deactivate stolen SIMs, CPOs are on the hook for data charges until the theft is discovered, possibly weeks later.

• Single management platform across regions. For CPOs using multiple mobile network operators, integrating their management platforms is costly and cumbersome.

Scale faster, operate smarter, and secure better with Cisco IoT Control Center connectivity management platform. Unlike other platforms that simply connect your EV chargers to the cellular network, Cisco IoT Control Center helps you scale quickly and increase profitability by reducing costs and automating more of your business. Whether you’re just starting out  or already operate thousands (or tens of thousands) of chargers, Cisco IoT Control Center accelerates your IoT journey from deploying your first chargers to operating at scale.

Scale faster

Managing cellular IoT at large scale can be overwhelming. Cisco IoT Control Center makes it as simple to onboard and manage 10,000 chargers as 10.

Accelerate time to market. Quickly and accurately connect, provision, and deploy chargers in bulk. Reduce hours or days of work to just minutes with sophisticated rules-based automation using a simple, intuitive interface.

Simplify expansion. Expanding to other regions served by our global network of roaming partners? With Cisco IoT Control Center, you save the time and costs of integrating multiple CMPs and training your team to use them. Even if some of your charging stations are outside our service area, you likely won’t need to learn another CMP. More than 50 service providers around the world use Cisco IoT Control Center.

Drive innovation. Gain data-driven insights about expansion or targeted advertising with analytics on individual charging stations’ data usage. Cisco IoT Control Center is continually enhanced with emerging technologies like AI/ML-based analytics for threat detection and new 5G technologies for services like entertainment, advertising, and in-car services.

Operate smarter

Deliver better customer experiences and increase profitability with near-real-time visibility, control, and rate-plan optimization based on AI/ML-based analytics.

Increase service reliability. Receive real-time alerts if a charger hasn’t connected for a specified time period, starts sending unusual amounts of data, begins roaming, or otherwise behaves oddly. Quickly identify and resolve problems using sophisticated diagnostics and analysis tools, improving the customer experience and protecting revenue. Quickly rule out or resolve cellular connectivity issues before dispatching a technician.

Deliver great customer experiences. Keep tabs on thousands of charging stations from one interface to make sure they’re operating and sharing their location and status with your mobile app. Confirm that payment systems are working. With Cisco IoT Control Center you can also offer dynamic pricing based on time of day and other variables. Customers who have the flexibility to charge at different times of day or in less popular locations appreciate the cost savings.

Avoid data overage charges. Use Cisco IoT Control Center to automatically optimize rate plans using AI/ML-based analytics. Be confident that you’re getting the best pricing based on current data usage. Automate workflows to save time and lower costs. Reduce operational costs with sophisticated process automation. We provide more than 100 APIs you can use to integrate cellular-connectivity data with your other business applications, avoiding the time and resources needed to manually import data. For example, integrate with your support ticketing system to automatically create a ticket whenever a charger goes offline. Integrate with your analytics application to understand usage trends. Seeing when and where usage peaks or dips can help you plan expansion, optimize operations, and measure the effectiveness of ad campaigns.

Secure better

Built by Cisco, a global leader in security, IoT Control Center gives you multilayer, enterprise-grade security and helps you respond quickly to suspicious device behavior.

Prevent unauthorized access. Protect your customer data and backend systems with multifactor authentication and role-based access controls.

Prevent SIMs from being used in another device. With a few clicks you can set a rule to automatically deactivate a SIM inserted into a new device and notify the appropriate people in your organization.

Speed response. Quickly identify potentially compromised chargers with real-time device monitoring and advanced analytics. Cisco IoT Control Center automatically initiates the right actions when devices exhibit unusual data and connectivity behavior.

Whether you’re a CPO, auto company, energy company, department of transportation,or another government entity, Cisco IoT Control Center can help you scale faster, operate smarter, and protect better.

Learn more about Cisco IoT Control Center (2CONTROL) here.

1 Electric Car Owners Switching to Gas Because Charging Hassle, Business Insider, July 28, 2021

2 Electric Vehicle Outlook 2022, BloombergNEF

3 Power Sector Accelerating e-Mobility, EY and eurelectric, 2022

4 Electric Vehicle Outlook 2022, BloombergNEF

The 2G closure is similar for all large operators in Sweden since the license for the 2G frequency ends in December 2025. Tele2 will use this opportunity to futureproof the network for all of our customers.

Tele2 IoT is here to assist you in not just understanding when and where decommissioning will happen, but also to understand how these changes will impact your deployment and what steps you need to take to deal with the coming changes – because the last thing you want is to still be using 2G and 3G networks when a carrier you rely on shuts that network down and your deployment is not ready for the next generations.

It is important to be proactive, not reactive, and most of all, to be prepared. It is essential to take inventory of every device deployed and assess which deployments and customers will need to make a transition. Tele2 IoT has the tools to help you identify where changes need to be made and our team is ready to assist you in assessing which technology you should move to, as well as address other challenges, such as if your hardware will be compatible.

The Tele2 IoT Team is committed to supporting and guiding our customers as we go through this technological shift. We are able to provide you with information on sunsetting dates for specific regions and countries as it is available so that your solution is not interrupted or otherwise impacted. There are plenty of excellent options available to replace 2G and 3G and we are happy to help you decide which best suits your particular needs.

Please get in touch, so that we can help you successfully navigate the changes ahead.

It’s not always crystal clear how your particular IoT Journey will look. The steps you take along the way may follow a clear path, or you may take unexpected turns as your business grows and evolves. One thing is clear, though: with the right support and services you’ll get the most from your IoT journey, no matter where it takes you.

When you started your IoT journey you probably had a business case that would best be realized by connecting things. Everyone’s experience is different and sometimes, when devices are first deployed, controlling that deployment is not at the top of the to-do list;  maybe the deployment wasn’t so big that it needed many changes so contacting the help desk for any changes was all you really needed. It was relatively simple, and you were just happy to have coverage.

Now you had more control and started optimizing your costs, and maybe even started to see the possibilities of new revenue streams, due the data you had. Time passed and new requirements made you reconsider your connectivity provider or your choice of connectivity technology, meaning you now had not one or two but three (or even more) legacy deployments.  Your choices now have you on three parallel IoT journeys, but that’s what customers wanted, right? Complexity was increasing, overview and control was hard, not to mention all those issues with data layers. The need to unify and simplify them became apparent and you began using products that helped you do that.

Once your connectivity was unified you continued to grow, again deploying more devices and getting more data and it’s at this point that you saw that you needed to get deeper into business analytics and get better insights into how your devices were performing – after all, big data is a hygiene factor these days. Online GUI is great, but you want those insights and data delivered straight into your own systems. API and streaming are the way forward, and you now need smarter connectivity.

Because you were determined to get the most from your IoT deployment you made it smarter and in turn, your business continued to grow. You might have started with 500 devices but now have 50 000 or even 100 000+ and are deploying in places you wouldn’t have dreamed of a few years ago – but which come with their own regulatory challenges. At this point you have a completely different set of requirements from both a global connectivity perspective and a quality perspective. You require low latency and probably attractive pricing beyond the retail offer.

Fragmented technologies, unpredictable connectivity costs, and regulatory difficulties might be just a few of the challenges you’re facing.  And the off-the-shelf connectivity everyone is offering is no longer enough for deployments of this nature. You need something bespoke that is tailored to your needs, but you don’t want to be heavily investing in building up an IoT/Telco company inhouse to deliver all of this – you want it delivered as-a-Service.

You’re always going to need your global SIMs with roaming agreements, you’re still going to need analytics, and you will always need to unify because who knows what technology lies around the corner? Your choices now should future proof your IoT solution, no matter what comes tomorrow .

The good news is that if you’ve made considered choices along the way you have already implemented technologies, products, and services that build upon one another, so as you reach unicorn status it’s really just a matter of adding that final layer that will make everything you’ve built work in harmony, like a well-oiled machine.

Building from the bottom up and adding layers where and when needed will take a lot of pain out of your IoT journey. With Tele2 IoT it doesn’t matter where you are in your journey – our solutions are built like legos stacked on top of one another: they fit with whatever you are building, whether that’s getting your deployment off the ground, unifying an already-complex solution, or giving you the tools you need to manage your global deployment in one consolidated access technology-agnostic platform.

You need to ask yourself if you need connectivity right now, or will you need it a year from now and ten years forward. What is your data and latency? How easy will it be to exchange the technology going forward, and what are the basic requirements of your use case?

6 connectivity components

Coverage 

Some IoT solutions need deep indoor coverage, while others regularly move around so that they always will find coverage somewhere. We are used with having cellular networks having 2G and LTE coverage almost anywhere and the technologies LTE-M and NB-IoT allow for even better coverage. If we assume that LTE-M and NB-IoT are activated in the same cells as is currently providing LTE, an extended coverage than what is provided today by the network operators can be expected.

Power consumption

Power consumption may play a critical role in the type of connectivity you choose for your IoT solution. Will your devices have constant availability of a power source or will they run on battery power? Will the batteries be rechargeable, or can they be easily replaced? LTE-M and NB-IoT are conservative on battery power and have battery saving possibilities such as PSM (Power Saving Mode) and eDRX (Extended Discontinuous Reception) that can reduce power consumption by reducing the responsiveness of the device. By securing good coverage where the device is located and limiting the communication, battery power can be saved.

Bandwidth & latency

Does your IoT solution require high data output with low latency, or will you be transmitting small amounts at regular intervals? There is a vast difference between CCTV with its high usage and bandwidth requirements, charging stations that need to be instantly activated, and temperature sensors with regular sensor readings – different factors will affect your choice of technology. LTE and 5G support low latency, high bandwidth, while LTE-M and NB-IoT support low cost and power consumption.

Cost

Total cost of ownership in IoT solutions include multiple cost points, such as subscription and usage fees for connectivity, bill of material for the device, the need to visit the device regularly and, in some cases, even running your own last mile network. The choice of technology affects the cost for your IoT solution. Make sure you are getting the connectivity you need at a total cost that fits your budget.

Most operators today offer a connectivity management platform to manage your cellular connectivity. They should offer smart automation functionality that can help you ensure that your connectivity costs are under control during the lifetime of the device with a limited amount of manual intervention.

Reliability and Security

For almost any IoT solution, reliability and security are crucial. For some, the connectivity is mission critical for providing the service. When selecting connectivity technology, make sure that you select one where there are partners that can provide a reliable and secure network service.

Long-term Support

The business case of most IoT solutions rely on devices that are functional for a long period of time. Depending on the technology and supplier choice, this will affect the long-term support. Cellular operators offer services on licensed frequencies that are backed by GSMA and 3GPP. We see that 2G and 3G networks are being sunsetted, while LTE and 5G will be around for many more years. LTE-M and NB-IoT are forward compatible in 5G and will have long term support in the industry.

As new technologies emerge and others are being sunsetted IoT will continue to evolve.  It is crucial that your connectivity provider is not able to just meet your needs today, but is also preparing to meet them tomorrow.

If you would like to learn more about how Tele2 IoT can meet your connectivity needs, please get in touch..

When you start looking at what kind of connectivity solution you need for your IoT project you will likely be thinking about both coverage and price.  One will impact the other when it comes to choosing the right connectivity package for your IoT solution, so it’s important to consider all aspects of your connectivity needs.  

Depending on your use case your need for roaming can vary; for example, you may have devices that cross borders and/ or travel globally, you may have devices that are limited to one country or region, but that are also mission critical so need the best coverage possible, or you may have devices that will be deployed locally and are sending data once a day. All of this means that roaming is an essential component to some customer’s solutions, while for others cost control takes precedence.   

So, any number of factors will come into play when deciding which connectivity package is right for you.  

Quality of coverage vs cost of coverage 

No network has truly global coverage and most countries don’t have just one network – they often have 3-5 different operators, with some having better coverage than others. As a customer, you have the possibility to gain access to many all of these networks, but you can also limit the number you have access to. If you choose to have one operator per country that also allows roaming, you can choose the one where the cooperation is the tightest and the cost is lowest.  

On the other hand, if you want access to all networks available, there is a price for this type of connectivity because your connectivity provider needs to cover the costs generated by roaming. So, the cost of connectivity will be reflected by whether you want all networks or just one.  

What are your needs? 

What we’ve seen at Tele2 IoT is that many of our customer’s solutions rely heavily on roaming. This of course includes customers whose devices are traveling across borders and around the globe, such as fleet management, but it’s also important for customers whose solutions are regional or national, often because they don’t always know where their devices will end up but also because they’re mission critical. 

Looking at use cases, a simple monitoring or metering service, or a service that is primarily located in an urban area might mean you need connectivity to collect data regularly, but it’s not a mission critical situation where it would be a disaster if one device briefly loses connectivity or has a bad signal from time to time. Micro-mobility companies connecting e-bikes or e-scooters are one example of this. They’re mostly operating in urban areas, so probably would be satisfied with the connectivity package that offers good urban coverage but that won’t guarantee you’ll be covered outside of the city. For these types of companies, an urban-specific option with less comprehensive coverage will cover their needs while also helping to control costs. 

Other use cases, such as anything connected with healthcare or transactional data, is where access to all networks is much more important, even if they’re country or region specific, because loss of connectivity means they can’t operate their business. If something goes wrong or there is an outage for some reason, having access to all networks means even if a device briefly goes offline, it will quick scan for and pick up the best available network, and your mission critical solution will continue more or less uninterrupted. If you have limited your coverage to one or two operators, it’s not guaranteed you won’t face disruptions.  

Which package is right for you? 

At Tele2 IoT we understand that different customers have different needs. Therefore, we have developed a number of standard and premium packages that support your needs, no matter what they are. 

For example, if price is your main concern and availability is not, you might want to choose the package which offers good coverage on selected networks. If you need the best available coverage, perhaps across different regions and borders, a more premium package giving access to all available networks would be better suited to your needs.  

To learn more about our connectivity packages and how we can help you understand which will effectively support your business needs, please get in touch.  

The Internet of Things (IoT) has been a buzz word ever since it first entered the Gartner “Hype Cycle” in 2011. By the time it first peaked in 2014 experts were predicting 50 billion connected devices by 2020, with investment topping $20 trillion. People thought everything from lamp posts to clothing to our bodies would be connected.

But whenever there is hype people tend to jump in feet first, instead of first dipping their toe in to test the temperature. It’s no different with IoT – five years on from it first peaking in the Hype Cycle the smoke has cleared and a different picture has emerged. The expected number of connected devices is now closer to 20 billion, with investment likely to be in the billions, rather than trillions.

So, what changed?

The US-based research and advisory firm Gartner first published its annual Hype Cycle in 1995. According to Gartner, new technology goes through five cycles: Innovation Trigger, Peak of Inflated Expectations, Trough of Disillusionment, Slope of Enlightenment, and Plateau of Productivity.

When IoT made its 2011 debut in the Hype Cycle it was part of the Innovation Trigger, before moving into the Peak of Inflated Expectations in 2014. Two years later, Gartner created a separate Hype Cycle for IoT, a move many speculated was based on the idea that while some IoT uses were maturing, others still had a way to go – and a separate hype cycle would better reflect the fragmentation.

When it comes to B2B, it’s clear that IoT is maturing. Streamlined processes, cost savings, possible new revenue streams – these are all proven benefits. Many companies see it as an essential part of their business strategy, but instead of going full steam ahead, their IoT solutions are based on a business case and they often started with a pilot, rather than with full implementation right away.

Despite IoT being a key strategic priority for companies, far too many solutions either fail or are not wholly successful.  Penetration is high, but utilization is low. Integration challenges, cost and duration of implementation, lack of skills and knowledge, fragmented markets, security questions – these are all reasons why an IoT solution can struggle.

It has taken far longer for companies to develop a firm understanding of the complexity of IoT, and even more importantly, many companies implement a solution without fully understanding or identifying which problem IoT will address, and how they will extract value from their IoT solution.

Additionally, the complexity of implementation varies from industry to industry. It’s easy to see and derive value when you slap a tracker on a car: you know where it is, you know when it needs maintenance, and you can measure everything from fuel consumption to road conditions.

On the other hand, connecting an airport is in many ways even more complex than connecting a city. There are systems for shops, airport tax, services to airline companies, support for the elderly or infirm, parking, WiFi… the list goes on and on. On top of that there are operational requirements, such as knowing where the baggage is.

As IoT has evolved the smart IoT provider has learned that focusing on core capabilities, with the understanding that no single company can deliver the entire IoT solution on its own, puts them in a better position to serve their customers. Acting as a partner to customers by helping them identify where IoT will deliver real value and then drawing upon an external partner ecosystem to being together the right ingredients is a big part of IoT being where it is today. IoT providers are now thinking long term; the solution that works today may not be the one the customer needs tomorrow. Both businesses and technology evolve, and IoT is now acting proactively, prepared and ready for what is heading our way.

Another area where IoT has matured is understanding how to manage data and offering solutions to customers.  Realistically, it doesn’t matter how much data is flowing – if you don’t have a clear understanding of what you want from it and then a way to extract value you’re not getting much of anything from your IoT solution.

At the end of the day, IoT hype is well-deserved. It is the kind of technology that can truly transform a business, from an operational standpoint as well as a business development one. As the rate of maturity increases, companies will no longer implement solutions without enough foresight or knowledge because providers will be on hand to guide them through the process and act as a real partner.

For more than 25 years the SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card has been fundamental in the development of mobile telecommunications. First introduced in 1991 SIMs began life about the size of a credit card and were designed to store information used to identify and authenticate users.

SIMs were also used to connect devices to 2G GSM (Global System of Mobile Communications).  SIM advancements have developed in close parallel with advances in cellular network evolution – but not all SIM cards were created equal.

SIMs & IoT

The rise of IoT meant the development of a different kind of SIM. While an IoT SIM acts similarly to a standard SIM, it does a very different job, offering features and functionalities that you won’t find on the SIM you have in your phone.

One main difference is the subscription type; among other things, an IoT subscription allows you to monitor data usage and SIM activity, you can activate and deactivate it, and you are able lock it to a device. You can also share data across all devices and have multi-operator coverage.

Another difference is the robustnes, since SIMs are often found in harsh environmental conditions. While standard SIMs only possess a 25°C to 85°C temperature range, an industrial IoT SIM can operate to temperatures as low as -40°C and as high as 105°C. Industrial IoT SIMs also enjoy a much longer life span than standard SIMS, due to their 17-year data retention capability, increased storage capacity, and as many as 16 million read-write cycles. Industrial IoT SIMs can come in any form factor, depending on the size of the device and the purpose it serves.

New SIM technology

With everything from smart homes to autonomous cars and Industry 4.0, the integration of IoT technology into both our everyday lives and a company’s core business is inevitable. But first we need to turn on the eSIM, which in many ways holds the key to the connected world.

Unlike with smart phones, where you can connect to WiFi and download an eSIM profile, with IoT there is not a person to connect and download the eSIM locally, so it has to be done remotely.

And there-in lies the beauty of the eSIM: everything can be managed remotely, including switching your connectivity provider, which offers tremendous savings when it comes to logistics and field support. And having a solution based on the global GSMA standard means you ensure both compatibility and future proofing.

Speaking of the future, what is next in store for IoT when it comes to SIM cards? Will they even be with us in five or ten years’ time – or will we have already moved on?

Predicting the future

In the future, we could see all devices connected through secure connections enabled by SIM technology, and it will be possible to change a subscription model remotely for optimal connectivity. eSIMs introduce a truly digital distribution of connectivity which enables new business models to evolve.

We’ll also see a higher degree of embedded SIMs, meaning SIMs that are built-in, where essentially there is no plug-in SIM at all in the connectivity-enabled devices.  These will play a big role in how quickly and seamlessly tracking devices connect.

An embedded SIM is a hardware-centric SIM integrated into the chipset. These SIMs will, among other things, simplify supply chains, enable smaller devices, improve power consumption, reduce costs, and maintain high security levels.

Chipsets, modules, and other hardware components will be produced with eSIMs, with provisioning connectivity profiles, which means the end product can connect directly.  The connectivity provider profile can be remotely changed if and when needed, and we thus move from a linear to a circular SIM lifecycle.

Because an eSIM can store multiple connectivity profiles we will also see more functionality being developed on top of the SIM – so-called SIM applets. SIM applets are small programs inside your SIM dedicated to fulfilling a particular task. This could be implementing the business logic to change a connectivity profile based on rules, such as when one network is not available.  This would provide redundancy for high-availability solutions, such as alarms.  Another business logic could be to automatically change a profile based on which which country the IoT device is trying to connect in.

SIM technology will continue to evolve to support new business logic and value creation – and SIM functionality will remain critical to your IoT solution in securely identifying and authenticating every device.

How can a prospective IoT business differentiate the qualities of one Telecom operator’s connectivity offer from another? Which connectivity provider gives best all-round value when it comes to reliable machine to machine connectivity, IoT expert service, and pricing? Here are top 5 tips that we recommend you to take a look at in order to optimize your data consumption and find the best IoT connectivity partner. 

The communication between things provides significant value for most industries today, such as lowering service costs with remote access, efficient energy utilization through real-time monitoring and creating new revenue streams by selling differentiated services.

We use connected machines to perform variety of different tasks to achieve this business value. It can be using car sensors that enable pay-as-you-drive auto insurance. The ability to monitor equipment remotely or GPS tracking that monitors vehicles/containers location and activity. The use cases are endless.

As connectivity is a crucial part of all M2M/IoT solutions and one of the potential cost drivers, it is important to make sure you choose a Telecom operator that can help you optimize your data consumption. Below you find five tips on what to look for.

1. Understanding the units you’re using

Does the telecom operator understand diversity in M2M/IoT devices? Is the connectivity service provider experienced in dealing with HW units and how they are being used in field? In example, some tracking units uses Binary for data format that uses much less data than ASCII. If you have units that support both then make sure you set the unit to use binary as the data usage will be lower.

2. The configuration of your device

Depending on your needs, you should configure the best optimal setting on your device. Because actual configuration of your device will affect the amount of data being used. For example in GPS tracking devices, the way you want to have the tracking interval/polling and heartbeat are very important. If you want to set tracking time down to seconds, then the device will push a lot of data. Using heartbeat and/or sleep mode (if supported) would save cost.

3. Rounding effect (the handshake cost)

If you configure the device to be always ON (learn how long a data session can be with your telecom operator and CDR creation maximum timeout) instead of starting a data session, sending few bites and closing the session down, will save you up to 15% cost. This means you can lower your costs by aligning according to the rounding policy of your telecom operator for around 5-15% depending on how often you send data.

4. Reliability of the cellular connectivity

Static devices sending non-critical data may only require single network SIMs if the coverage in given location is good (do not forget that coverage also depends on the traffic at base station in a given time). But if the device is roaming/mobile, operates from areas with shaky signal coverage, or involved in sending business critical data, a single network SIM (or a SIM with roaming steering to the “cheapest” network partner) presents risks of connectivity failure. Multi-network SIMs go a long way in addressing this risk by automatically switching connection between networks to retain best signal connectivity. So, ask if you are getting full roaming without network steering and access to the best signal in a given location?

5. Automation to prevent overage charges

Most of the connectivity service providers also have some sort of SIM management platform. Check if your platform can be pro-active and take action if something un-expected happens. Inability to do anything beyond simple email alerts on potential issues is a possible extra cost and/or customer dissatisfaction for you. Real-time ability to de-activate rogue devices or push a notification into existing IT systems via APIs means devices with problems can be fixed before they become customer support calls to you.

All in all; you should look for the competence level of your telecom operator before signing an M2M/IoT deal with them. Most of the network and connectivity issues can often be resolved online or over the phone. But sometimes the M2M devices themselves malfunction or may experience network signaling issues. Check if your Telecom operator has testing skills that can work with you to physically examine the M2M device to ascertain the most likely cause of the problem? Will the service provider be able to help get you back up and running quickly if anything goes wrong?

At Tele2 IoT we have a long history in connectivity. We can help you to optimize your costs and go global. If you would like to learn more about how we can help enable your business, please get in touch.