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Massive C-IoT is coming. How can a managed SCEF boost your IoT business?

The latest Ericsson mobility report predicts that there will be 4.5 billion C-IoT devices by 2024. Naturally, operators and service providers are seeking to target this market – but to do so, they need to upgrade their networks and introduce a SCEF. Find out how Partitionware can help solve this challenge.

The latest edition of Ericsson’s mobility report makes interesting reading, particularly for those involved with cellular IoT services. Although the headline forecast growth rate has reduced slightly, it’s predicted to be a still healthy 27% - making IoT an attractive market, both for established players and new entrants. Importantly, the overall prediction for the total number of devices remains strong – expected to reach 4.5 billion by 2024.

While many of today’s IoT solutions still use 2G and 3G, an increasing number of these, as well as newly deployed devices will likely leverage Cellular IoT (C-IoT) connections, such as NB-IoT or CAT-M1. So, providers need to be prepared to scale their networks to cope with the specific connectivity needs of such devices.

While adjustments can easily be made to the RAN, providers must also be prepared to make changes to their core network in order to support this growth. Specifically, any operator that expects to service C-IoT devices at the predicted scale must introduce a SCEF to their architecture. The SCEF, or Service Capability Exposure Function, is a key functional entity, defined by 3GPP. It provides a means of securely connecting applications to large numbers of remote C-IoT enabled devices, while also facilitating a more efficient means of data transfer and exchange.

So, the SCEF is fundamental to any business plan to embrace IoT services enabled by cellular technology. Operators and service providers will need access to SCEF resources in order to manage registration, security and data transfer to IoT applications. Of course, this represents an additional investment and adds complexity to their networks.

There is an alternative approach. By partnering with Partitionware, operators and service providers can obtain access to managed and specific SCEF capabilities, simplifying the task of introducing this function and accelerating their ability to target massive C-IoT deployments. If you are intending to capitalise on C-IoT growth, then elements of the SCEF are essential. The managed SCEF capabilities from Partitionware ensure that your network is optimised for massive C-IoT opportunities and gets you to market faster. Find out how you can capitalise on this opportunity while leveraging a secure, managed solution.

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