China Mobile, AT&T collaborate on Internet of Things to drive its deployment on the mainland

Two sides say they will develop new technology platform that will seamlessly move an AT&T business customer’s IoT subscription to China Mobile’s vast wireless domestic service

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China Mobile, the world’s largest wireless network operator, is to collaborate with US telecommunications conglomerate AT&T to drive the deployment of so-called Internet of Things initiatives by businesses on the mainland. Photo: EPA

Published: 11:45am, 27 Feb 2017Updated: 11:32am, 1 Mar 2017

China Mobile, the world’s largest wireless network operator, has agreed to collaborate with US telecommunications conglomerate AT&T to help drive the deployment of so-called Internet of Things initiatives by businesses on the mainland.

“We believe this will help unlock new options and experiences for our customers, while achieving one of our core goals – increasing the number of connected devices on our network,” Li Feng, the chairman and chief executive of China Mobile International, said in a statement released hours before Monday’s opening of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain.

The Internet of Things, or IoT, is generally described as a vast network of smart, connected devices embedded with electronics and software, which gather and send data remotely over the internet without any human interaction.

Worldwide spending on IoT is forecast to reach US$1.29 trillion by 2020, up from an estimated US$737 billion last year, led by companies in the manufacturing, transportation and utilities industries, according to technology research firm International Data Corporation.

A Chinese construction worker uses his mobile to take a photo of a poster placed outside of a construction site showing the design of future high-raise buildings and skyscrapers in Beijing.

China Mobile and AT&T said they will develop a new technology platform that will seamlessly move an AT&T business customer’s IoT subscription to China Mobile’s vast wireless domestic service.

The behind-the-scenes switch will help simplify tracking the supply chain and provide greater efficiency for AT&T’s business customers looking to expand to China, according to the US operator.