Gemalto intros LTE M2M module for connected cars

Security and SIM specialist Gemalto this week expanded its M2M portfolio with an LTE wireless module. The firm claims its Cinterion PLS8 solution will enable LTE connectivity for connected car systems and NFC applications.

The offering is based on an LTE chipset from Qualcomm and provides LTE multiband support.

“Over the next few years, the industrial sector is expecting to see steady double-digit growth for connected machines,” said Andreas Haegele, head of the Cinterion M2M product portfolio at Gemalto. “Coupled with the increasing availability of LTE networks globally, this irreversible secular trend is creating new opportunities for Gemalto to expand the machine to machine technology for the Internet of Things market.”

Competition in the Internet of Things space is increasing rapidly as more telcos prioritise the market for 2014. Late last year, AT&T’s executive director of product marketing for advanced mobility solutions and business solutions Mobeen Khan, said that although M2M is currently the domain of niche developers, AT&T predicts that in 2014 more developers will begin experimenting in markets away from its traditional use in fleet management, utilities and construction. The firm expects that this year, growth will be seen in South East Asia and Latin America for both local M2M deployments and its use in supply chain tracking.

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Enterprise software platform provider Magic Software shared AT&T’s views, and claimed that 2014 will see the Internet of Things move “from hype to reality”. The firm predicts that devices will be more widely connected than ever before, and said that technology that might have seemed outlandish a few years ago, such as wearable devices, is now making it into mainstream use.

Meanwhile, telecoms trade association the GSMA published specifications in December 2013 to enable the remote over the air provision and management of embedded SIMs in M2M devices. The association said that its embedded SIM project has the backing of several tier-one operators and SIM solutions providers.