Deutsche Telekom joins Bridge Alliance for international IoT push

Deutsche Telekom is the first European telco to join The Bridge Alliance via its IoT subsidiary within the T Business unit. The benefits of joining the club are pitched as offering the ‘greatest possible flexibility for both sides to meet individual customer requirements in an international environment.’

Bridge Alliance describes itself as a ‘mobile alliance’ with 35 members and a billion customers, serving consumers and enterprises in Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Africa and Europe. ‘Strategic partners in Europe and the Americas extend our coverage,’ says the organisation’s website, presumably referring to deals like this one with DT.

The organisation offers multi-country coverage for enterprise mobility, machine-to-machine (M2M) and IoT rollouts for multinational companies. The way it is supposed to work is member operators pool resources and share best practices to deliver uninterrupted roaming, amongst other things.  

By signing up, Deutsche Telekom now offers ‘global companies easy access to the countries of the Asia-Pacific region (APAC),’ which DT says is a milestone on its way to becoming a global provider for connectivity.

The point of it is supposed to be that companies can sell and operate their IoT solutions and networked products internationally without having to work out separate solutions with local providers, using the T IoT Hub as a central point of contact.

Since some national authorities prohibit permanent roaming and others prohibit certain data from leaving the country, cooperation between providers is needed to be able to offer local connectivity under global contracts to enable IoT projects, we’re told.

“We are very pleased to now be a strong partner for the Bridge Alliance,” said Dennis Nikles, Managing Director of Deutsche Telekom IoT. “We are pooling the know-how and technical expertise of all members. Together, we always offer our customers the best connectivity solution for their global challenge. For companies from the Asian region, it is now even easier to do IoT business in Europe. This is particularly interesting for the growing market of Asian electric vehicles in Europe. But European customers also benefit. A strong global offering - all under one contract, one management and one globally standardized service.” 

Elsewhere in German digital transformation related moves, Vodafone Germany has announced a €250 million investment into digital services and products this year, and it intends to hire 120 experts in cyber security, cloud, productivity, connectivity, IoT and other ‘future areas.’

"Our customers already want more than just SIM cards and landline connections,” said Zoltan Bickel, acting head of corporate customers at Vodafone Germany. “Every second order we place is for one of our Beyond Connectivity services. And demand continues to rise. In order to provide our customers with the best possible support on their digitalization journey, we are therefore strengthening our Vodafone Business team. After all, a successful digital transformation requires not only the best software, but also the best minds. And we have always had them on board.”

Hagen Rickmann will take over as head of Vodafone Business in Germany on March 1 next year, replacing Bickel as acting head of corporate customers.