• Sigfox signs up Telefónica for global IoT services
• Telefónica to integrate Sigfox technology

LPWAN specialist, Sigfox, has done a deal with global giant Telefónica which will see Telefónica integrate the Sigfox technology into its managed connectivity platform and use the unlicensed network as its low-cost ‘mass market’ offering for worldwide IoT services. It is also expected to play a ‘backup’ role for Telefónica’s cellular based IoT devices.

The deal is an important one for Sigfox which has recently seen its rival, LoRa Alliance, gain traction with operators - in particular South Korea’s SK Telecom and KPN in Europe.  Until now Sigfox has been following a different deployment model where it runs a single global network and enlists telco partners to site its gateways and provide connectivity.  It has focused on getting thin coverage in as many countries as possible and has inked deals with the likes of Atari in the US, where it announced it would be taking its services into 100 cities.

Sigfox has made much of its LPWAN economics, seemingly able to cover large geographies with just hundreds of base stations for (relatively) little capital outlay. It says it’s currently live in  31 countries, including the UK, France, Spain, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Portugal and the US, and is on track to cover 60 by 2018.

The network has a population footprint of 486 million people.  

But there’s no doubt that getting Telefónica properly on board (it was an early supporter of Sigfox) will be a big assist with the giant’s ability to market the connectivity to a global audience.

According to Sigfox CEO Ludovic Le Moan, “We are honoured to have reached this agreement with Telefónica. It is a true testament to the mass IoT opportunity, which is already a reality today. Existing customers are already developing new use cases based on our combined value proposals, with cellular and Sigfox’s connectivity  working seamlessly to provide powerful IoT use cases.”