• Two global M2M bodies join forces
• Want to provide a standard environment for globally roaming objects (like shipping containers)
• More details available at Mobile World Congress

The Bridge Alliance and the Global M2M Association are joining forces forces to strengthen the hand of the cellular network based (or we might say, incumbent) M2M practitioners as the field starts to hot up.

At one end of the market is the presumably low-cost LPWAN players such as the LoRa Alliance, Sigfox and Weightless. Just ‘above’ this, the cellular players seem intent on carving out their own LPWAN market by adding the same sort of technology to the cellular network architecture, and at the top of the market are the cellular applications which use existing technology to support more high-value and probably more ‘mobile’ applications.

The Bridge Alliance and the Global M2M Association’s decision to get together means they can present a united global front (global being important here) to “collaborate to drive worldwide growth in M2M and Internet of Things markets”, says the press release.

It helps that they are strong in different parts of the globe. The two alliances have a complementary footprint: Bridge Alliance members cover 35 markets from Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa, and the GMA’s seven operator groups cover 42 markets in Europe, North America, Africa as well as Asia.

Put them all together and the new alliance is talking about a partnership that will ease the joint provision of ‘Multi-Domestic Service  across 77 markets, using a single global connectivity management platform and  common  eUICC SIM solution, embraces the GSMA Remote SIM Provisioning specification – the world’s first alliance-to-alliance remote provisioning of an eUICC SIM.

In simple terms the partnership hope to smooth the process of arranging worldwide coverage for M2M which, at the moment and always up to now, has been far more fraught and obstructed than it should be. Or, if you prefer a bit of jargon: “It significantly reduces barriers for enterprises, keeping total cost of ownership low while maximizing quality of service. The Multi-Domestic Service is the world’s first alliance-to-alliance remote provision based on GSMA specifications.”

The joint service will be demonstrated by the GMA and Bridge Alliance at the Mobile World Congress 2016, Innovation City, Stand A11 in Hall 3.