2024 MWC Barcelona wrapped up with over 100,000 people attending in person. 2,700 exhibitors and 1,100 speakers. It’s a clear indication that companies still find value of attending in person shows and there is still value in meeting face to face.

eSIM for IoT at the show

We went in to the show doubling down on eSIM technology by announcing our new partnership with Kigen around SIM based eSIM Management and with Simetric on our partnership to offer aggregating eSIM Management for the IoT ecosystems. The common theme with these press releases was “Make it Simple” for Enterprises to start their eSIM journey. Making things Simplex is also the mantra that drives Simplex Wireless. The message received amazing feedback and our customers loved it. Having the ability to use eSIM and achieve Connectivity Freedom is something that Solution Makers and OEMs have been looking for a long time.

We sat in on the GSMA eSIM Keynote session and the key takeaways we took was that the IoT connections were doubling from 2.9Billion in 2022 to 5.8Billion lines in 2030 and eSIM is well position to drive that growth.

5G RedCap starting to be more prevalent

In addition to this there was a clear presence increase for 5G RedCap for IoT (read our article on 5G RedCap here). The 5G investments have yet not materialized. NR RedCap is an important driver for Massive IoT deployments, with sought of cost reductions and performance improvements.

The entire ecosystem from Module Makers, Device Makers and MNOs are getting behind this technology. Interesting enough if USA is a big driver for eSIM technology the front runner for RedCap were Chinese MNOs with their adaptation of the technology. This means that many of the Module and Device Makers will be able to test and prove their technology before other markets are rolling out.

NTN Networks for IoT

The 3^rd megatrend we saw was the Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN) topics for IoT. This is to provide low data coverage around the globe without interruptions. At Simplex we have been looking at the right time to jump into providing NTN coverage in addition to the cellular services we provide.

There is now a full ecosystem for NTN offerings and the traditional MNOs have partnered up with Satellite companies to expand their services beyond ground.

What did you think of the show if you were there? Let us know, send us a message or drop a note below!

Jan Lattunen, Simplex Wireless

About the Author: Jan Lattunen manages Sales and Marketing for Simplex Wireless. Jan has 20 years’ experience in working with SIM card technology and was involved in launching the eSIM in North America with major carriers and OEMs. His expertise in telecommunications is around SIM cards. On a personal note, Jan is a family man and avid cyclist with advocacy for safety in the roads. You can connect with Jan on https://linkedin.com/in/JanLattunen