Orange has completed its first data connection using LTE-M technology in a trial at its Spanish opco.
The France-based operator teamed up with Ericsson, using the Swedish vendor’s virtualised packet mobile radio network, and Telnet, which provided the IoT solution, for the demonstration, which involved commercial devices.
There were no further details about what the trial involved.
The operator is planning to launch LTE-M across Belgium and Spain this year, before bringing the technology to its other markets.
It said the advantages of using LTE-M is efficiency, quality of standardisation, robustness, scalability and security in working within licensed spectrum.
A spokesperson said: “This is a new step in the path to develop the IoT ecosystem which will lead to a new industrial revolution.”
It has been a busy week for Orange and the IoT after it announced yesterday that it was helping to produce the first IoT module with integrated cellular connectivity.
Alongside its LTE-M tests, Orange is also working with LoRa and plans to launch roaming services using the non-cellular technology by the end of next year.Â
A founding member of the LoRa Alliance, the operator told Mobile Europe in May that its strengths were interoperability and flexibility.
Orange is also planning a NB-IoT network for launch in 2018.