London, Dec. 10, 2014: United Kingdom’s first-ever dedicated Internet of Things (IoT) network has been launched.
Arqiva, the communications infrastructure and media services company, and SIGFOX, a pioneer in cost-effective, energy-efficient IoT connectivity, have today launched the first sites in the rollout of their IoT network across ten of the UK’s largest cities. The network will make it simple and affordable to connect millions of “things”, helping cities and businesses to improve services, reduce costs and protect property and people.
The two companies had first announced their partnership to create a dedicated UK IoT network in May 2014, as reported by The Internet Of All Things. Their aim was to connect ten of the UK’s largest cities within a year, and as of December 2014 sites in each of the ten target cities have gone ‘live’, connecting them to the SIGFOX global IoT network.
The ten UK cities are:
· Birmingham
· Bristol
· Edinburgh
· Glasgow
· Leeds
· Leicester
· Liverpool
· London
· Manchester
· Sheffield
One of the first sites in London is in the Royal Borough of Greenwich. Greenwich is rapidly establishing itself as a leader in smart city innovation and, as announced last week, will be a UK pilot for the introduction of driverless cars.
Wendy McMillan, Managing Director of Smart Metering and Machine-to-Machine solutions at Arqiva, said, in a written statement, “Our network is truly unlocking the promise of the Internet of Things. Together with existing connectivity, such as street-level WiFi, these cities are becoming hubs for digital innovation. A whole host of smart city and intelligent building applications can now deliver strong benefits – from smart parking and waste level monitoring through to connected smoke alarms.”
Councillor Denise Hyland, Leader of the Royal Borough of Greenwich said after the launch; “Greenwich recognises that all the UK’s leading cities are engaged in a global competition and that cities with a clear vision for the digital economy will be in a stronger position. This kind of technology will bring benefits to all our resident’s right across the whole of our borough and in time will really help enhance how we deliver services. This technology will help cities tackle economic and social challenges and will help solves issues like traffic congestion as well as enhancing security, and making heating and lighting more efficient.
Rodolphe Baronnet-Frugès, Executive Vice President Network and Business Development at SIGFOX, commented, “This two-way IoT network, which has been rolled out quickly and easily, eliminates the cost and energy-use barriers to widespread adoption of the Internet of Things by UK municipalities and companies. Through this project, Arqiva and the UK are presenting a clear example to governments and network operators around the world of how conveniently the SIGFOX network can help make the IoT’s many projected benefits a reality.”
Arqiva has been at the forefront of network solutions and services in the digital world, providing much of the infrastructure behind television, radio, satellite and wireless communications in the UK.
SIGFOX, on the other hand, claims to be the only provider of dedicated cellular connectivity for the Internet of Things and Machine-to-Machine communications. The company’s network complements existing high-bandwidth systems by providing economical, energy-efficient two-way transmission of small quantities of data, thus lowering barriers to wide implementation of IoT and M2M solutions.
Image Credit: SIGFOX/Arqiva
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