Telenor has launched a new platform for developers to build IoT products and services.
Telenor Start IoT will offer a LoRa-based low power wide area network and back-end system providing access to the infrastructure at “relatively low cost” as a connectivity backbone for the solutions.
It will also provide start-ups, students and developers with free development kits to use over a period of five years.
The operator said it could open up the platform in future to include 2G, 3G and 4G, as well as NB-IoT and eMTC standards.
Start IoT uses Telenor Connexion’s Cloud Connect enablement platform, built on Amazon Web Services IoT, which can be used regardless of the underlying connectivity technology.
It will initially be rolled out in Trondheim, Tromsø and Oslo from 1 May.
Potential users can access the network infrastructure through a dedicated developer site providing information on the devices, connectivity and backend as well as development kits, startup guides and user forums.
Sigve Brekke, President and CEO, said: “By providing cost-free access to next-generation IoT infrastructure, we provide Norwegian startups and students with the ability to develop and rapidly prototype new IoT products and services.”
He added the move was part of a broad initiative from the telco to drive growth in the use of technologies such as artificial intelligence, IoT and big data in its home market of Norway.
The initiative follows the opening in March of a new lab in Norway that will use data from its networks to examine how artificial intelligence can be used for “real-life problems”.
The Telenor-NTNU AI-Lab, based in Trondheim, will work on joint projects to build knowledge around AI and its application to real-life problems. Other companies and organisations will contribute with problems to be solved and datasets.
Telenor will provide anonymised data from its mobile and IoT networks as well as its own research.