Gemalto bags Qualcomm deal for PC eSIMs

Gemalto has announced a new partnership that will see its eSIM solution integrated into Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Mobile PC platform, another incremental step towards the reality of always-connected PCs.

The concept of the eSIM is not a new one, though progress has been relatively slow to date. Some might point towards the operators as the speed bump in the road, as the concept does allow for a simplified transition between connectivity providers, though the technology does have the potential to open up a new wave of innovation. Reprogrammable SIMs would certainly add to the growing IoT trends, removing the hassle of manually changing SIMs.

The partnership itself will see Gemalto’s eSIM technology and remote subscription management solutions integrated into the Snapdragon mobile PC platform’s Secure Processing Unit, allowing for the introduction of consumer applications such as online payments, transport ticketing and authentication to cloud services.

“This new agreement with Qualcomm Technologies aims at accelerating adoption of seamless cellular connectivity in PCs, tablets and other mobile products,” said Frédéric Vasnier, EVP for Mobile and IoT at Gemalto. “We are committed to continued innovation with Qualcomm Technologies in order to provide superior built-in security and connectivity experiences.”

The partnership is set to kick into reality with the launch of the first connected-laptops next year, though this certainly is a good sign for Gemalto. The potential market for eSIMs is monumental, essentially everything which has an IoT use-case, therefore piggy-backing off Qualcomm success is not necessarily a bad more.