Telecom Italia (TIM) has announced the imminent launch of a Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) service in 5,000 localities all over Italy, equivalent to 75 percent of its network. The company said it will be the first Italian operator to offer the commercial IoT service based on LTE technology at the end of October, with the roll-out of narrowband technology set to be completed by January.
Telecom Italia and Huawei have been collaborating in the development of NB-IoT technology at the operator's Turin-based research labs since 2015. In April TIM’s ICT services subsidiary Olivetti and Huawei teamed up with Turin’s metropolitan water company SMAT to carry out a field test on the first smart water meter capable of automatically sending meter readings via the live NB-IoT network. The companies will now work on the development of commercial services involving all types of smart meters, allowing real time monitoring of consumption and remote management of gas, water and electricity transmission and distribution networks, as well as district heating and environmental management.
TIM added that its Turin NB-IoT Open Lab has already been made available to a total of 110 companies, with 39 active collaborations currently ongoing and 12 validation activities having been completed since the lab opened in November.
