Movistar Colombia (Telefonica) has announced the deployment of a dedicated Category M1 (Cat M1) network through its Movistar Empresas unit. This network enables companies to connect their Internet of Things (IoT) devices with greater energy efficiency, operating at low power and long range.
Also Read: Ooredoo Oman Prepares for 3G Phase-Out, Future-Proofs Smart IoT Devices
Deployment of Cat M1 Network
Telefonica Colombia offers this technology to traditional Machine to Machine (M2M) connectivity customers, in combination with its Kite platform. Kite is a managed IoT connectivity platform that allows companies to control and monitor their connected devices in real-time, from anywhere in the world.
Benefits for Businesses
The CAT-M1 network is designed for massive connections of industrial devices, ensuring the efficiency and technical reliability required for M2M connections in digital transformation initiatives, Telefonica said. Use cases for this network include fleet management, telemetry, intelligent lighting, precision agriculture, intelligent metering, and Smart Cities, among others.
Also Read: Movistar and Tigo Sign MoU to Explore Mobile Network Sharing in Colombia
Movistar Empresas said, "The development of the CAT-M1 Movistar network is the evolution of communications between M2M devices, over the mobile data network, enabling the massification of the IoT. The CAT-M1 network covers the needs of companies in different sectors, since it allows the transfer of small data packets with low latency, coverage in areas of difficult access, savings in device costs and longer battery life, contributing to the operational efficiency and sustainability of our customers."
Also Read: Ooredoo Kuwait Announces Integration of NB-IoT Technology Into Its Network
Expansion in Latin America
Telefonica Colombia highlighted that Movistar Empresas has over 6 million IoT connections in Latin America and extensive experience in IoT services globally. Colombia is the second country in the Hispam region to deploy this technology as part of Telefonica's evolution plan.
