Starhome Mach recently surveyed the world’s roaming community at the GSMA Wholesale Agreements and Solutions (WAS) conference to examine IoT/M2M growth and how it will affect global networks.
With more than 86% indicating that they had either launched or were in the process of launching M2M services, it is clear that M2M is a mainstream, global opportunity for mobile operators.
The survey results revealed several important roaming issues.
Currently 70% of operators are unable to detect when M2M devices roam into their networks. These devices do not behave like people; some consume signalling but very little data, and the ones that are defective or poorly configured may cause significant network issues.
The survey showed that 75% of operators are not steering their outbound M2M devices to preferred partner networks for fear that devices will lose coverage during the steering process. This major industry issue prevents operators from optimising their wholesales costs. Furthermore, M2M is compounded by low ARPU, meaning unmanaged M2M roaming traffic may be costing operators significantly more without a comparable return.
“M2M/IoT has the potential to drive significant growth for operators,” said Guy Reiffer, V.P. Marketing and Partnerships at Starhome Mach. “However, they need the infrastructure to identify and manage the opportunities while maximising revenue and minimising risk.
“Starhome Mach can make a difference. Our ‘Awareness and Profit’ M2M products focus on optimising wholesale revenues and allowing the operator to identify inbound M2M devices for better control,” continued Reiffer.
Starhome Mach’s new IoT/M2M portfolio offers several key features that are critical for success in the growing IoT market. First, it allows the operator to identify all of its M2M roaming traffic to ensure services can be monetised. Second, devices can be easily and smoothly steered while prioritising device and customer traffic, maintaining quality of service levels and satisfying wholesale agreements. Third, individualisation allows operators to provide their verticals with different levels of coverage, quality of service and support, and a unique approach to IoT profitability.
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