There has been a rising demand for smartphone functionality integration with vehicles and other devices. IoT devices that use remote sensors and IoT SIM cards are usually spread over a large geographical area which requires wider network coverage and better visibility. In 2015, the 2G market held the largest market share for usage in IoT devices. However, with the rise of eSIM devices and advanced cellular IoT technologies like NB-IoT and LTE-M, this is set to change.
Cellular IoT and eSIM Management:
According to a forecast by Markets and Markets, the cellular IoT market is set to grow from $1.26 billion in 2015 to $5.31 billion by 2022, at a CAGR of 23.34% during the period from 2016 to 2022. The rapidly growing demand for end-to-end security, low power consuming devices, and extended network coverage area play a major role in the growth of this market.
As 5G looks to make its global presence felt soon, mobile devices are set to dominate global connectivity. One estimate says that mobile will account for 25.2 billion connections by 2025. This comes up to $4.8 trillion in financial value, making up almost 5% of the global GDP.
The biggest challenge here for hardware developers and SIM card producers is creating a seamless and universal connectivity path between the device and the network. eSIM technology and eSIM management platforms are a major step towards achieving seamless connectivity for all devices.
eSIM technology arrived in the market at a time of rapid digital transformation and significant change in the telecom industry. It has opened new avenues and created opportunities for MNOs and MVNOs, helping them go beyond connectivity and across the value chain.
There are still many challenges to eSIM adoption, the major one being the high operational and subscription costs. However, over time and with new competitors entering the market, these costs will reduce substantially. Global eSIM adoption is still at least 5 years away from capturing a 50% market. Cost efficiency is realised through better availability and lower per unit costs. To achieve this, companies should use connectivity partners who can handle a Network-as-a-Service model and also technical and commercial integrations needed.
As eSIMs allow customers to use multiple mobile networks on the same device, this creates new challenges for SIM card suppliers. This includes managing resources while consumers switch services on and off, activating services on demand and integrating several devices on the same service with all their separate eSIMs. An eSIM management platform helps to overcome all these challenges.
Advantages of eSIM Management:
To manage eSIM devices across sectors and networks, MNOs require two different solutions to cover both the consumer market and the M2M sector. A hybrid eSIM management platform is the next generation of remote SIM provisioning. It simplifies eSIM management by offering one integrated platform solution, lower costs and easy set-up.
Here’s how MNOs can benefit from hybrid eSIM management:
1. Advanced Functionality:
Consumer SIM cards are traditionally optimized to allow faster load times to enhance the customer experience. Enterprise-oriented eSIM technology focuses on efficiency, reliability, and longer life for the hardware. Also known as machine-to-machine (M2M) SIM cards, IoT SIM cards and eSIMs provide connectivity for the automation of many industrial processes which allows companies to work around the clock while using fewer employee work hours. As a result, this automation increases production significantly and reduces payroll costs.
eSIM management platforms also allow you to manage your IoT subscriptions, access points and remote devices and lets you monitor your M2M communication from a single platform. When systems or devices malfunction, an alert is automatically sent to the engineer specifying where and what the problem is, saving both time and money that would have been spent in finding and fixing the device manually.
2. Global Reach Saves Time:
Traditional SIM cards are limited to a single network within the host country and must follow the rules and regulations that have been put in place. To create a network access point in another country, SIM card producers will have to purchase and distribute SIM cards that comply with the restrictions of the said country. This process will then have to be repeated every time a new location is chosen to be added to the network coverage area.
Remote SIM provisioning allows users to activate and access multiple network profiles including those in other countries. This technology allows organisations the benefit of global reach, automatically reconnecting devices to the strongest network available.
3. Reduces Switching Costs:
eSIM technology allows remote provisioning, which means organisations can switch networks without physically replacing the SIM cards. In an industrial environment, the locations of the SIM cards and devices can become difficult to access while remaining separated geographically. In larger organisations, there are hundreds or even thousands of connected devices; purchasing and physically switching out all these SIM cards to switch networks is a costly and time-consuming task.
4. Security:
Traditional SIM cards made it nearly impossible to clone cell phone numbers, adding a layer of security to the cellular network. eSIM technology takes this security to a whole new level. These SIMs are embedded within devices during the manufacturing process, practically guaranteeing that unauthorised access to the chip or tampering cannot take place.
5. Durability:
eSIMs have been designed to withstand extreme heat, cold and harsh environments. This has helped increase the application of eSIM-enabled devices, with industries using them in mine shafts, under oil rigs, and in research labs in extreme locations. The longer life and durability of eSIMs along with easy and rapid deployment and cost-efficient hardware setup make it the front running technology for your connectivity needs.
