MediaTek debuts RedCap modem technology and chipset family to expedite the transition to 5G-NR for consumer, enterprise, and industrial IoT applications.

Leveraging its industry expertise in 5G connectivity, MediaTek announced it is expanding its family of modems and chipsets to support 5G RedCap.

The new solutions, the M60 modem IP and the MediaTek T300 chipset series, will make it easy for MediaTek to facilitate the transition to 5G-NR for a wide range of applications that require long lasting and efficient battery life, such as wearables, light-weight AR devices, IoT modules, and devices built with edge AI in mind.

RedCap, which stands for “reduced capability,” is designed to bring the benefits of 5G to NR consumer, enterprise, and industrial devices. Taking full advantage of the evolution of 5G networks to the Standalone (SA) network architecture, RedCap promises to deliver reliability for devices that have low bandwidth requirements, offering many of the benefits of 5G without the cost and complexity of typical 5G solutions.

“Our RedCap solutions are a significant part of our mission to democratize 5G, providing our customers the ability to optimize components and deliver 5G-enabled devices from a range of applications and a range of price points,” said JC Hsu, Corporate Senior Vice President at MediaTek.

“The migration to 5G RedCap will replace legacy 4G/LTE solutions, offering significantly better power efficiency and more reliable user experiences compared to leading edge 5G eMMB modem solutions and legacy 4G LTE Cat 4 and Cat 6 devices.”

As the world’s first 6nm Radio Frequency System-On-Chip (RFSOC) single die solution for RedCap, the MediaTek T300 series is breaking new ground in the RedCap space. This RFSOC will allow brands to capitalize on the emerging RedCap market and create innovative designs for enterprise, industrial, consumer, AR, and data-card applications. Built on the highly efficient TSMC 6nm process, the MediaTek T300 series integrates a single-core Arm Cortex-A35 in a significantly more compact PCB area. The MediaTek T300 series supports up to 227 Mbps downlink and 122 Mbps uplink data rates.

Both the T300 series and the M60 5G modem IP support the 3GPP R17 standard and combine MediaTek’s industry-leading power efficiency with coverage enhancements and extremely low latency. By leveraging MediaTek’s UltraSave 4.0 technology and reducing unnecessary paging receptions, the M60 offers up to a 70% reduction in power consumption compared to similar 5G eMBB solutions and up to 75% power savings compared to 4G LTE solutions.

MediaTek’s RedCap solutions are driving a new wave of efficiency, reliability, and cost-savings for 5G-enabled devices across the consumer, enterprise, and industrial sectors to meet ever-evolving connectivity requirements and expectations. The MediaTek T300 series devices will sample in the first half of 2024, with commercial samples in the second half of 2024.

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The Semiconductor Industry: Threatening IoT’s Future?

The Internet of Things (IoT) has become increasingly vital in our interconnected world, where technological devices enable our everyday lives. Today, there is an expectation that products will seamlessly connect and operate without difficulty. Popular devices that rely on IoT connectivity include smart home devices, wearables, industrial sensors used in manufacturing and agriculture, patient monitoring devices, medication dispensers, and smart appliances. Each of these requires semiconductors to power their operations and enable connectivity. The full potential of IoT heavily depends on the availability of these semiconductors to meet current and future demands; these industries are inextricably linked. Thus, the ongoing challenges within the semiconductor industry pose a long-term threat to IoT functionality, and its stability significantly impacts device availability, innovation, cost, scalability, and seamless connectivity between IoT devices. Any disruption in this supply chain could wreak havoc on IoT’s growth, development, and adoption.

The Forecast for 2023 and Beyond

The global economy has felt the impact of the chip shortage which affected nearly every industry including hyperscale, enterprise, automotive, telecom, security, industrial, medical, energy, and lifestyle. While many believe the electronic component constraints of the past few years are resolved, the underlying issues that affected the production and supply of chips have not been corrected for the near term, which will impact IoT’s acceleration.

Despite some improvements in chip production and supply, an inventory imbalance remains due to increased buying and forced delivery from long-term agreements signed during the component shortage. Original equipment (OEMs) and contract manufacturers currently have a surplus of certain electronic components but still lack crucial parts needed to complete production. In addition, many companies are sitting on the sidelines, in some cases, taking a wait and see attitude, which has led to a slowdown in production in the first half of 2023 due to economic uncertainty. The expectation therefore is that companies will continue to spend much of 2023 trying to absorb or sell surplus inventory.

With the IoT industry expected to grow exponentially through 2030, we will witness a new technological super cycle with EV, AI, IoT, 5G and the next generation of PCs as the major drivers. This will lead to an explosive surge in demand for semiconductors, especially IoT’s essential components like microcontrollers, processors, memory chips, and wireless communication modules. However, challenges in IT infrastructure buildout to meet these orders will create unpredictability through 2025 and may significantly impact IoT adoption.

The Challenge of Tomorrow

In response to the semiconductor supply chain challenges, new fabrication facilities are being constructed globally, including in the U.S., to ease the pressure during this technological renaissance. Yet, ongoing supply chain volatility is expected as these facilities will not be fully operational for several years and are expected to focus production on the more advanced nodes required by next-generation technologies. Older chips will remain in high demand for products with longer lifecycles in critical industries like medical and automotive, and currently it is unclear how production will ramp up for these components. Additionally, greater visibility into component needs of new product development is necessary.

The fact remains, if the electronic components required to meet this escalating demand for IoT devices are not readily available, we will see increased delivery times and new product introduction slowed, which will impact IoT’s growth.

Until we know what semiconductors will be required to support future technologies, we will not have clear insight into demand, making it difficult for chip manufacturers to plan for the proper mix. Once component needs have been identified, there will be a better understanding of the supporting elements needed to stabilize the supply chain.

Remaining Vigilant in a Rapidly Changing Landscape

Semiconductor manufacturers will continue investing in research and development to keep pace with evolving IoT needs. These investments will drive advancements in fabrication techniques, wireless communication, energy efficiency, security, and processing capabilities. But despite additional manufacturing efforts, supply chain volatility, component constraints, and inventory mix issues are expected to persist until 2030.

For OEMs and other executives leveraging IoT, continuous planning, monitoring, and adjustment are crucial. This technological revolution will demand constant adaptation and flexibility, and those who can adjust will have a clear competitive advantage.

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• Quectel and Qualcomm dominated the cellular IoT module and chipset markets, respectively.
• NB-IoT is still popular among technologies but is expected to lose some market share to 4G CAT1.bis in 2023.
• 5G adoption to get a boost in 2024 if ASP declines to sub-$100 and 5G RedCap-based solutions become available.
• China continues to lead IoT module market, followed by North America and Western Europe.

Global cellular IoT module shipments grew 14% YoY in 2022 to register record high annual volume, despite macroeconomic headwinds, according to Counterpoint’s latest Global Cellular IoT Module and Chipset Tracker by Application report.

The resumption of smart meter implementation, ongoing retail POS upgrades, intelligent asset tracking and the continued growth in connected cars due to progress in electrification and autonomous capabilities were some of the key drivers for the double-digit percentage growth in demand for IoT modules..

China continued to lead the global cellular IoT module market in terms of demand, followed by North America and Western Europe. Meanwhile, India was the fastest growing market, followed by Latin America and North America. Although India has a smaller base, it has immense potential. Eastern Europe was the only region that registered a decline due to the prolonged Ukraine-Russia war.

Commenting on the competitive dynamics among cellular IoT module OEMs, Senior Research Analyst Soumen Mandal said, “In 2022, Quectel was the top cellular IoT module player in China, the world’s largest market for these components. Meanwhile, China Mobile and Fibocom captured second and third place, respectively, enjoying their tremendous scale in the domestic market. Outside of China, Quectel remained the leader followed by Telit and Thales which have merged and will commence operations as a new brand, Telit Cinterion, starting Q1 2023.

Quectel increased its focus in the consolidating automotive (NAD module) segment in 2022 and secured multiple design wins with major automakers. The competition in the NAD module market is intensifying as the industry transitions to 5G connectivity. With every transition of cellular technology, we have seen the market consolidate as it becomes increasingly challenging to serve the automotive segment, which requires heavy customization but garners a lower margin.

China Mobile, the world’s largest CSP and IoT connectivity player, is becoming more vertically integrated by leveraging its massive scale to capture maximum value. It has the potential to break into the top three global cellular IoT module rankings this year.. However, the company primarily operates in China and will need to expand into other verticals and markets via a robust partnership model to maintain its momentum.”

Commenting on the IoT cellular connectivity chipset player dynamics, Associate Director Ethan Qi said, “Qualcomm continued to dominate the cellular IoT chipset market in 2022 with nearly 40% shipments share. Qualcomm strengthened its position in the LTE CAT 4 and higher technologies while also maintaining a dominant position in the 5G market. Qualcomm recently launched its latest 4G CAT1.bis chipset, QCX216, to compete head-on with the LTE CAT1.bis leaders UNISOC and Eigencomm.

Qi added, “In 2022, UNISOC and ASR maintained their second and third positions due to strong adoption of the fast-growing LTE CAT1.bis and CAT 1 based modules, respectively. During the year, two new players from China, Eigencomm and Xinyi Semiconductor, broke into the top five cellular IoT chipset vendor rankings, filling the gap left by Hisilicon. Eigencomm focuses on NB-IoT and 4G CAT1.bis applications while Xinyi Semiconductor focuses on NB-IoT chipsets, both being low-cost but high-volume segments.”

Commenting on the technology landscape, Mandal added, “During 2022, NB-IoT remained the most popular LPWA IoT connectivity technology followed by the fast-growing 4G CAT 1 and 4G CAT 4 modules. Together, these contributed to 60% of the total IoT module market. For most of 2022, China was under lockdown due to the resurgence of COVID-19 which drove greater demand for products such as smart door locks, digital thermometers and wearables, mostly powered by NB-IoT.

NB-IoT saw strong adoption in China but has been less popular outside the country. In contrast, 4G CAT.1bis has been gaining traction globally and has the potential to be an alternative to several NB-IoT and existing 2G/3G applications such as smart meters. However, 5G saw slower adoption in IoT than in smartphones last year due to the higher module costs. The key initial 5G applications are PCs, CPEs and some industrial/enterprise applications.

We believe 5G will enter the mainstream market once the module ASP breaks the sub-$100 barrier and receives a further boost from the 5G RedCap commercialization in coming years.”

Commenting on the IoT market outlook for 2023, Associate Director Mohit Agrawal said, “Global cellular IoT module shipments (including NAD modules) are expected to register robust growth of 19% YoY in 2023. The growth of IoT module shipments in the high-value industrial segment will be key for the IoT projects that have struggled to move beyond the pilot stage and for companies that are focusing more on ROI in a tough macroeconomic environment. Nevertheless, shipments of IoT modules for the smart meter, point of sale (POS) and the automotive markets are expected to continue seeing strong growth, which will offset a slowdown in other segments.”

“The market has been undergoing consolidation across the IoT value chain from module players and connectivity management to IoT platform players. This has highlighted the importance of scale, choosing the right vertical and capturing value by striking the right partnerships or developing the right capabilities. We could see some more exits and mergers in 2023 because IoT, which is very vertical driven, has been seeing volatile growth due to internal or external factors.”

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5G standard is designed to address broad applications beyond smartphone. In first 3 years, 5G had been predominantly applied in smartphones. However, with the commercialization of 3GPP Rel.16 5G modem, 5G adoption in broad IoT applications start to accelerate in 2022.

5G RedCap standard in 3GPP Rel.17 will open up the new industrial 5G use cases, push further market growth after 2024-2025.

5G Standard Roadmap

3GPP published the latest Rel.17 standard in June 2022. 5G modem compatible with 3GPP Rel.17 is expected be commercialized in 2023. The Rel.17 standard will extend IoT use cases as well as extension of mobile broadband. In addition to NR positioning improvement and sidelink (device to device communication) improvement, NTN (non-terrestrial network = satellite communication), 5G RedCap (Reduced Capacity: 20MHz bandwidth) will be added as new features.

The new 3GPP Rel.18 standard will be published in 2Q/2024. For 3GPP Rel.18, existing functions will be added and have functions for xR (AR/VR). In the 5G standard, more emphasis is placed on edge computing, AI/ML-based networks, resource management between base stations, and cooperation between base stations and terminals for low-latency communication and network resource efficiency for IoT use cases.

3GPP Rel.18 to Rel.20 are positioned as 5G-Advanced. Standards after 3GPP Rel.21 are defined as 6G. Based on 3GPP roadmap, 6G devices will be commercialized around 2028-2029.

5G Device Market Forecast

Non-handset 5G device market grows by 157% YoY to 28.8 million units in 2022. 5G device market growth will be accelerated in 2025 with expansion of 5G telematics and industrial IoT use cases.

Among 5G applications, cellular tablet and broadband CPE are earlier in supporting 5G. By 2022, 37% of cellular tablet, 34% of cellular CPE support 5G respectively. 5G tablet and 5G CPE accounts about 80% share in non-handset 5G device market in 2022.

In 2022, 5G CPE market has grown rapidly, not only replacing LTE CPE but also acquiring fiber broadband subscribers in North America, Japan and Middle East.. After 2023-2024, the 5G FWA market is expected to expand in Europe and emerging markets followed by the 5G network expansion and decline in 5G CPE device price.

Industrial 5G/ private 5G deployment is slow, though several private 5G project will shift from trial to commercial service, larger scale deployments in 2023. 5G telematics market start picking up in China in 2022, though wider deployments will start in 2024-2025.

For industrial 5G, one of the challenges is that it is difficult for economies of scale to work, especially in the module and IC business. Industrial 5G use cases such as factory automation, remote robot control, AI robotics, realtime video streaming… have small volume scales, making it difficult to reduce hardware cost. Especially when using a dedicated frequency band for local 5G services, the cost becomes a bigger.

For automotive telematics, 5G has been adopted in the Chinese market in 2021 ahead of other countries. Outside of China, 5G telematics will be commercialized in Europe: 2023, North America: 2024, and APAC: 2024-2025. The share of 5G is expected to start increasing in 2025-2025 and reach 33% in 2027. The demand for V2X, drive assistance, and autonomous driving become the trigger of 5G adoption in vehicles.

5G RedCap standard with reduced performance and cost will accelerate 5G adoption in industrial and wearable, which does not require broadband connectivity or lower power consumption. The first 5G RedCap chipset will be commercialized in 2023, and mass-production will begin in 2024. China will take 2-3 years ahead in 5G RedCap deployments. The Chinese government will promote 5G RedCap, and it is expected to be adopted for smart electric meters, industrial automation, and so on. In rest of world, the adoption of 5G RedCap is likely to start up around 2027.

Early applications of 5G RedCap include electric power utilities, IP camera (including drone, factory automation), industrial IoT (AR glass, AGV, monitoring camera, remote robot control…) and so on. Consumer wearable is expected to adopt 5G RedCap after 2026.

The challenges of 5G RedCap are the module cost and network infrastructure. Mobile operators need to invest their 5G network to support 5G RedCap, therefore it will take a few years for mobile operators to extend 5G RedCap network in wide area. For module cost, 5G RedCap chipset cost is expected to be over double compared with current LTE Cat.4 chipset in the beginning. Industry expects that Chinese mobile operators subsidize 5G RedCap module to narrower the gap between the costs of LTE Cat.4 module.

Millimeter Wave (mmWave) 5G market is very small so far. It is estimated to reach 0.9M units in 2021 and 1.7M units in 2022. In 2022, the market grew due to the increase in mmWave 5G for tablets (iPad). Excluding tablets, the market size only increased slightly to 0.4M units in 2021 and 0.5M units in 2022.

Although mmWave 5G frequencies have been allocated in an increasing number of countries, investment to the network has not progressed and the available area is limited.

Private 5G (used in indoor, or local area) and fixed wireless access (FWA) are likely to be the applications which take advantage of the features of mmWave 5G. However, mmWave 5G FWA typically requires the use of outdoor antenna units to receive signals from base stations, which hinders its widespread use especially for home broadband. Private 5G has a small business scale and does not contribute to market expansion.

5G Chipset Competition

The cost of 5G chipset is one of fundamental challenges in wider 5G adoption globally. Currently, only three companies, Qualcomm, MediaTek and UNISOC provides 5G chipset in non-handset market. More chip suppliers are expected to enter the 5G modem chip market in 2023-2024.

In 2022, Qualcomm takes dominant position in non-handset 5G modem market with over 80% market share. MediaTek focuses more on mobile router, CPE, and cellular notebook PC market, with early success in 5G CPE market. UNISOC develops low-end 5G chipset and got some design in 5G devices for China and emerging countries.

5G slim modem chipset prices vary by applications, the range is from around $65 to $25 as of 2022.. Because of the semiconductor material cost increase and inflation, chipset price will not decrease significantly in 2023. From 2024 onwards, market expansion and competition are expected to lead to price declines, especially in the mid-end and low-end segment.

Non-Handset 5g Modem Roadmap

Qualcomm and MediaTek are currently commercializing 5G chipsets for the high end and mid end. UNISOC is commercializing low end 5G chipset with low communication speed. UNISOC 5G chipset has been adopted in China and emerging markets.

All 5G chipsets after 2021 are 3GPP Rel.16 compliant.. 3GPP Rel.17 5G chipset is expected to be commercialized in 2023.

Qualcomm and MediaTek commercializes 5G chipsets optimized for specific application. In addition to slim modem (x55, x62/65) for module, Qualcomm has developed smartphone chipset for smart module and tablet, and has commercialized module (315) for industrial IoT, 5G chip (SA515) for automotive. Qualcomm’s new chipset (x72/75) is a SoC optimized for CPE and mobile router. MediaTek introduces SoC for MBB/CPE (T750, T830), for automotive (MT2735), and T900/1300 for tablet.

5G chip suppliers are expected to increase in number in 2023. GCT Semiconductor, ASR, Sanechips, Cygnus, and TD-Tech are likely to commercialize new 5G chipsets. Also, Sequans may commercialize a 5G chipset in 2023-2024.

For 5G modem ICs, there is a tendency to use cutting-edge process technology for lower power consumption and better performance.. Qualcomm and MediaTek 5G chipset in 2021-2022 employs 4/5nm process. On the other hand, smaller IC suppliers choose lower-cost 7/8nm and 12nm process.

5G RedCap Chipset

The schedule for 5G RedCap chipset is anticipated as follows: sample shipment in 1H/2023, chipset mass production in 2H/2023, and module and equipment are expected to appear in 2024.

Currently confirmed 5G RedCap chipset suppliers and schedules are as follows:

• 2H/2023: TD-Tech, Qualcomm (x35)
• 2024: UNISOC, ASR Microelectronics, MediaTek?
• 2025-2026 (?): Sanechips, Cygnus, C-Mind, Eigencomm, Xinyi
• 2026-2027: Sony Semiconductor, Sequans

Excluding Qualcomm, Chinese IC manufacturers are expected to take the lead in 5G RedCap chip development. TD-Tech is the earliest, followed by UNISOC and ASR. In addition, Sanechips, Cygnus, C-Mind, Eigencomm, Xinyi and others may commercialize 5G RedCap chips after 2025. MediaTek is also considering commercializing 5G RedCap. There are challenges in terms of funds, human resources and LTE, 5G IP assets for the 5G RedCap chip development by startup companies.

Among Western chipset makers other than Qualcomm, Sony Semiconductor and Sequans are planning to develop 5G RedCap chip. However, the schedule is not firm yet as 5G RedCap commercialization schedule is not clear in markets other than China.

5G RedCap chipset is initially expected to be dual mode with LTE Cat.4. The baseband logic size is expected to be the similar as LTE Cat.4, but the RF circuit is increased compared to LTE.

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Milestone underscores CEVA’s central role in the IoT era, enabling wireless connectivity and intelligence in billions of smartphones, consumer electronics, wearables, IoT endpoints and edge AI devices.

CEVA, Inc., the leading licensor of wireless connectivity and smart sensing technologies and co-creation solutions, announced today that cumulative royalty-bearing chip shipments that include CEVA IP surpassed 15 billion units during the second quarter.

This significant milestone has been achieved as CEVA approaches it’s 20-year anniversary of being a public company. While the first 10 billion CEVA-powered shipments spanned more than 15 years, the next 5 billion shipments took less than three and a half years.

The incredible rapid adoption rate of CEVA’s IP in the IoT era is a testament to the company’s role in the democratization of wireless connectivity, through the broad licensing of its 5G, cellular IoT, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and UWB platform IP to hundreds of semiconductors and OEMs. This effectively lowered the entry barriers for embedding wireless connectivity in SoCs, enabling companies to design more cost-effective and power-efficient chips that led to the proliferation of wirelessly-connected devices that we take for granted today. These devices include smartphones, wearables, hearables, wireless speakers, smart home appliances, white goods, plugs, lights and many more.

Gideon Wertheizer, CEO of CEVA, stated:

“Surpassing the 15 billion CEVA-powered chip shipment milestone is a very noteworthy accomplishment for CEVA and its customers. The steep shipment ramp we have experienced over the past 3 years directly coincides with the explosion of IoT devices, where almost every electronic device that ships today is connected.”

“We have been developing and investing in wireless technologies for two decades, and today CEVA is proud to be at the forefront of wireless connectivity in the IoT era. Going forward, as devices become increasingly smarter, integrating more sensors and intelligence, our sensing technologies and edge AI platforms are primed to build on our wireless success. We are excited and invigorated by what’s next for CEVA as the adoption of our technologies continues to grow and we reach new heights.”

Today, more than 50 CEVA-powered devices are sold every second around the world.

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• Qualcomm, UNISOC, ASR and MediaTek were the top four cellular IoT chipset vendors in Q4 2021.
• NB-IoT contributed to almost a third of the cellular IoT chipset shipments during the quarter.
• Smart meter, POS, router/CPE, industrial and automotive were the top five applications in Q4 2021.

Global cellular IoT chipset shipments grew 57% YoY in Q4 2021, according to the latest research from Counterpoint’s Global Cellular IoT Module and Chipset Tracker by Application.

China continued to dominate the cellular IoT chipset market by accounting for nearly 60% of the shipments. 5G grew 392% YoY followed by 4G Cat 1 with 154% YoY growth. Router/CPE, PC and industrial were the top three applications for 5G.

Commenting on the market dynamics, Research Analyst Anish Khajuria said:

“Qualcomm, UNISOC and ASR held the top three positions in the global cellular IoT chipset market in Q4 2021, accounting for nearly 75% of the total shipments.”

“UNISOC, Qualcomm and ASR were the top three players in China. For the rest of the world, Qualcomm led the market, followed by UNISOC and Intel.”

Qualcomm led the global cellular IoT chipset market with a 38% share in terms of shipments. Qualcomm grew its share both annually and sequentially with traction across key segments such as automotive, router/CPE, retail, asset tracking and industrial IoT. However, competition from local players in China, such as UNISOC and ASR, in key fast-growing segments like LTE Cat-1/Cat-1 bis and NB-IoT limited Qualcomm’s growth opportunities in the world’s largest IoT market. However, Qualcomm has broadened its portfolio of IoT solutions, targeting specific verticals like retail, automotive, industrial IoT and smart cities. It has also launched an IoT services suite covering more than 30 verticals to enhance platform support for IoT-as-a-service (IoTaaS) applications and accelerator programs (like smart cities) with a more ecosystem-led approach bringing in different stakeholders across the value chain.

UNISOC, the second-largest cellular IoT chipset player globally, has been strong across NB-IoT and 4G Cat 1 technologies. Its cellular IoT chipset shipments growth has continued for nearly last four quarters and is able to fill the gap which HiSilicon left in the market. Moreover, it is making steady improvements in higher-end technologies such as 5G, 4G Cat 4 and above. It has also succeeded in expanding its customer base to Quectel, Fibocom, China Mobile and many more module players. This helped it to capture more than one-fourth of shipments in Q4 2021. UNISOC is focused on low-end applications like smart metering, POS and industrial. For 5G, it has launched the V510 baseband and V516 platform which are widely used in FWA routers and CPE devices.

ASR Microelectronics maintained its third ranking in the cellular IoT chipset market in Q4 2021 due to strong performance in the 4G Cat 1 and 4G Cat 4 module segments. ASR is providing strong competition to UNISOC for 4G Cat 1 and to Qualcomm for 4G Cat 4 module-based applications lately. However, ASR is yet to launch NB-IoT and 5G solutions and thus will have to work on its long-term capabilities and strategy to maintain this high growth which could remain for the next 2-3 years. The company has increased its production capacity this year to meet demand. ASR has local partnerships with many module players in 4G Cat 1 and Cat 4 technology, like Quectel, Longsung and Rinlink.

MediaTek took the fourth position in the market in Q4 2021. However, it is not much focused on the cellular IoT market compared to the smartphone chipset market. This is one of the key reasons for it to lose 4% market share sequentially in this quarter. MediaTek is also focusing on 5G enhancement and recently launched Kompanio 900T, a new 5G platform for tablets, notebooks and other IoT devices. The MediaTek T750 chipset is already quite popular for FWA and CPE devices.

Eigencomm registered a strong growth of 3743% YoY albeit on a smaller base as it struck partnerships with Quectel and Fibocom for NB-IoT module chipsets.

Sequans also registered growth with a robust 4G, LPWA and 5G chipset portfolio. The French manufacturer saw strong traction in key markets such as asset tracking, healthcare and smart meters.

Sony Semi (Altair Semi) registered growth this quarter with a strong partnership with Sierra Wireless and Wistron NeWeb targeting smart meters, asset trackers and smart cities markets.

Samsung also launched a 5G chipset targeting automotive applications. It may provide strong competition to Qualcomm and MediaTek if it can enter a strong partnership with automakers.

Intel and HiSilicon are still supplying their leftover inventory to some of their top customers where the modules with their chipsets are designed in.

Commenting on the application side of chipsets, Vice President Research Neil Shah said:
“Smart meter, POS, router/CPE, industrial and automotive were the top five applications in terms of shipments in Q4 2021. PC had the maximum growth of 245% YoY, followed by smart meter with 124% YoY and router/CPE with 112% YoY growth. Router/CPE, PC and industrial were the top three applications for 5G. For NB-IoT, smart meters, asset tracking and energy were the top three applications. 4G Cat 1 is becoming popular in the POS, industrial and smart meter segments due to its high performance and low power consumption architecture. We forecast that smart meters, industrial and router/CPE will grow the maximum in the future.”

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• Quectel and Qualcomm led the global cellular IoT module and IoT chipset markets respectively in Q4 2021.
• 5G contributed to nearly a quarter of the cellular IoT module market revenue.
• Automotive, router/CPE, industrial, PC and POS were the top five applications in the quarter.

Global cellular IoT module revenue grew 58% YoY in Q4 2021, according to the latest research from Counterpoint’s Global Cellular IoT Module and Chipset Tracker by Application.

China, the leading region in the cellular IoT module market, accounted for more than 40% of the revenue. However, India was the fastest growing (154% YoY) cellular IoT module market. 5G was the fastest growing (324% YoY) technology followed by 4G Cat 1 (105% YoY). Router/CPE, PC and industrial were the top applications for 5G.

Commenting on the market dynamics, Senior Research Analyst Soumen Mandal said: “Quectel, Telit and MeiG held the top three positions in the global cellular IoT module market, accounting for 40% of the total revenue in Q4 2021. For 2021, global cellular IoT module shipments and revenue grew 59% and 57% YoY respectively.”

Quectel’s cellular IoT module revenue grew more than 100% YoY in Q4 2021. Strong partnerships, superior service and a wide range of product offerings are supporting its growth. Quectel launched a new ODM brand, Ikotek, targeting the US market. We expect it to help Quectel increase its footprint in North America and Latin America. Moreover, the products can be customized and designed according to the regulatory requirements of a project.

Telit made a strong comeback after a relatively weaker performance in recent history. Telit has been expanding its offerings, which is helping its revival. Telit NExT is providing flexible connectivity plans across 190 countries to take advantage of emerging business models and removing major bottlenecks for many IoT device vendors. In Q4 2021, Telit’s focus on Latin America to help customers migrate legacy 2G and 3G modules to 4G Cat 1 modules helped it become the leading module supplier in the region to complement its strong position in North America.

MeiG is another Chinese player which is making continuous progress and made it to the top three in cellular IoT modules, both in shipments and revenue. It is focusing more on AIoT and smart module-based higher-end applications such as router/CPE, intelligent cockpit, video recordings, industrial PDAs, drones and AR/VR. MeiG entered lower-end applications in 2021. This product mix of higher-end and lower-end modules helped MeiG increase revenue by more than 100% in Q4 2021.

Thales, Rolling Wireless, Sunsea, Fibocom and Sierra Wireless are other key players. Out of the top 10 players, Rolling Wireless and LG are focussing on the automotive segment only.

Thales is performing well in Europe, North America and Japan targeting smart meter, healthcare and industrial applications. Sunsea improved its performance in the global IoT module market, but it wasn’t enough to prevent its share from going down. The industry is growing at a faster rate compared to Sunsea’s growth. Fibocom is showing a stronger presence in 4G Cat 1 bis technology. However, Fibocom slipped out of the top five module vendors rankings due to weaker performance of NB-IoT modules.

Rolling Wireless’ and Sierra Wireless’ revenues increased 105% and 87% respectively. After spinning off from Sierra Wireless’s automotive division last year, Rolling Wireless quickly made it to the top 10 module vendors list. Rolling Wireless and Sierra Wireless have been successful in targeting specific applications, such as automotive and router/CPE respectively.

Automotive, router/CPE, industrial, PC and POS are the top five cellular IoT applications in terms of revenue. However, drones, PC and router/CPE are the top three fastest growing segments. Smart meters is another key segment but the lower ASPs of NB-IoT and 4G Cat 1 modules mean it is not among the top five IoT applications in terms of revenue.

Commenting on the regional performance of module vendors and pricing dynamics, Vice President Research Neil Shah said:

“International players made a strong comeback in Q4 2021 after weaker performance in the previous quarter. Quectel, MeiG and Sunsea were the top three cellular IoT module players in China in terms of revenue. For the rest of the world, Quectel, Telit and Thales were the top three cellular IoT module players.”

Quectel is leading in most regions except Latin America, India and Japan. However, as these regions currently represent a small share of the global cellular IoT module market, it doesn’t have much impact overall. Japan’s preference for LTE-M works against Quectel.

In China, MeiG overtook Fibocom to become the second largest cellular IoT module vendor.

Neoway, another Chinese module vendor, maintained its leading position in the Indian market. Strong partnerships with smart meter manufacturers and telematics providers are helping Neoway to maintain its position.

The overall cellular IoT module ASP increased 7% sequentially due to supply chain constraints, especially in 4G modules. Chinese chipset players are trying to reduce the 5G module ASP for mass commercialization. However, 5G adoption hasn’t picked up as expected. We see 5G peaking in the global cellular IoT module market after 2025.

The post Global Cellular IoT Module Revenue Grows 58% YoY in Q4 2021; 5G, 4G Cat 1 Modules Fastest Growing appeared first on IoT Business News.

CEVA-powered cellular IoT chips serve largest IoT markets including wearables, smart meters, asset trackers and industrial IoT.

CEVA, Inc., the leading licensor of wireless connectivity and smart sensing technologies and integrated IP solutions, today announced that more than 100 million CEVA-powered cellular IoT chips have been shipped by CEVA licensees since the beginning of 2020.

This significant milestone comes on the back of the rapid adoption of cellular connectivity in wearables, smart meters, asset trackers and industrial devices based on the LTE Cat-1, LTE-M and NB-IoT standards, all of which CEVA addresses with its family of cellular IoT DSPs and platforms, including the CEVA-Dragonfly NB2 NB-IoT solution.

The recent Ericsson Mobility Report forecasts that cellular IoT connections will grow from 2.4 billion in 2022 to reach 5.5 billion in 2027, a CAGR of 18%. Moreover, after a slow start, Massive IoT connections (LTE-M, NB-IoT) are expected to grow at a CAGR of 37% during the same period, comprising more than half of all cellular IoT connections.

CEVA has a large and diverse global cellular IoT customer base, with more than a dozen licensees today developing cellular IoT chips for modules, consumer, industrial and smart grid use cases. As 5G networks continue to be rolled out around the world and upcoming releases of the standard set to address 5G IoT use cases, CEVA’s cellular IoT DSPs and platforms lower the entry barriers for semiconductor companies and OEMs to develop their own cellular IoT SoCs and address this burgeoning market.

Tal Shalev, Vice President and General Manager of the Wireless IoT Business Unit at CEVA, commented:
“We’re proud to have reached this important milestone of helping our customers ship more than 100 million cellular IoT chips powered by CEVA IP.”

“Connectivity is a key technology driving the rapid digitization of everything and CEVA together with our licensees, play a fundamental role in the growing use of cellular networks to connect IoT devices. We are excited to watch this market growth and look forward to seeing what innovations the next 100 million CEVA-powered cellular IoT chips bring to the smart and connected world.”

The CEVA-Dragonfly NB2 platform is a pre-certified, complete NB-IoT IP solution that can serve a wide range of applications. It integrates a CEVA-BX1 processor, an optimized RF transceiver, baseband, and a protocol stack, offering a Release 15 Cat-NB2 compliant modem solution that reduces time-to-market and lowers entry barriers. The CEVA-Dragonfly NB2 is a fully software-configurable solution designed for ultra-low power and low-cost devices that can be extended with multi-constellation GNSS and sensor fusion functionality.

For other massive IoT and broadband IoT use cases, the CEVA-BX1 and CEVA-BX2 multipurpose IoT processors combine DSP and control processing in a single instruction set architecture, eliminating the need for a separate CPU core for upper layer stacks and system control. These processors are ideal for cellular IoT baseband processing and complementary workloads including voice, connectivity, positioning and sensor fusion.

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Highlights:

• The quarter saw record 53% and 60% YoY increase in shipments and revenue respectively.
• Qualcomm dominated the global cellular IoT chipset market, capturing almost half of it.
• Smart meter, POS, automotive, router/CPE and industrial were the top five applications in this quarter.

Global cellular IoT module quarterly shipments reached the 100 million mark for the first time in Q2 2021, according to the latest research from Counterpoint’s Global Cellular IoT Module, Chipset and Application Tracker.

5G was the fastest growing technology YoY (+800%), followed by 4G Cat 1 (+100%). However, NB-IoT captured close to a third of the market in terms of shipments. China alone contributed nearly 85% of the total NB-IoT module shipments in this quarter and continues to be the leading geography for cellular IoT use-cases and deployments.

Commenting on the market dynamics, Research Analyst Soumen Mandal said:

“Quectel, Fibocom and Telit are the top three players in global cellular IoT module revenue rankings, capturing nearly 40% of the total revenue during Q2 2021.”

Quectel cellular IoT revenue grew 49% YoY during the quarter due to strong performance of NB-IoT and 4G Cat 1 modules in mainland China. Continuous rise in global presence, diversified product portfolio and increasing partnerships with more IoT module ecosystem players helped Quectel increase its market share in Q2 2021 compared to the previous quarter. Moreover, Quectel entered IoT antenna services, offering more than 250 antenna options. These services can be an alternative revenue source in the coming years. The vertical integration will help Quectel establish itself as a “true IoT” component solutions vendor in the global market.

Fibocom was also able to increase its share in the global cellular IoT module market, cementing the second spot in our global rankings. The company saw strong demand for its 4G Cat 1 shipments during this quarter but also continued to expand its 5G modules portfolio, targeting multiple applications to closely compete with the likes of Quectel, Thales and MeiG.

Telit entered the top three rankings of cellular IoT module vendors riding on its strong performance in 4G Cat 1 and LPWA modules. Moreover, Telit launched smart modules and NB-IoT modules recently following in Chinese module players’ footsteps. These modules will give Telit a boost across North America and Europe in the coming quarters.

Thales’ cellular IoT module revenue grew 47% YoY. 4G Cat 1, 5G and smart modules are expected to help Thales regain market share in coming quarters, with strong traction across the developed markets like Europe, North America and Japan.

Rolling Wireless and MeiG are some notable players among the Top 10 cellular IoT module vendors which are improving performance continuously. Rolling Wireless is purely focussed on automotive applications, whereas MeiG is more focussed on POS, telematics, industrial and router/CPE applications.

The following exhibit showcases the competitive dynamics for IoT chipset vendors across different geographies. These dynamics are a function of a telecom operator’s strategy, application focus and partnerships with module vendors.

Commenting on the cellular IoT chipset supplier landscape, Vice President Research Neil Shah said:
“Qualcomm is leading cellular IoT chipset shipments share across most of the fast-growing advanced cellular technologies. This has helped Qualcomm increase its market share further by capturing nearly half of the cellular IoT chipset market.”

HiSilicon is the second-largest player in the cellular IoT chipset market, still holding the fort in the IoT segment. NB-IoT is contributing more than 90% of HiSilicon’s shipments. Going forward, HiSilicon is expected to surrender the NB-IoT leadership position to its homegrown competitor UNISOC.

The third-largest vendor, UNISOC, is the only one among the top five cellular IoT chipset players which grew by more than 100% YoY during the quarter. The recent module launches trend shows UNISOC is focussing more on NB-IoT and 4G Cat 1. Quectel, Neoway, Longsung and Open Luat are some notable players which launched UNISOC-based modules during this quarter. Moreover, UNISOC unveiled Release 16 supported 5G chipset platform V516 in August. It is expected to help UNISOC increase market share in 5G applications such as manufacturing, port surveillance, grid monitoring, telehealth and patient monitoring.”

Overall module ASP increased by 5% YoY due to rising 5G shipments and semiconductor shortages. The ASP for 5G modules reached sub-$150 for the first time in Q2 2021. The second half of this year will provide momentum for 5G module adoption as most of the modules will come under production by then. However, the global cellular IoT module market will be more prone to supply shortages in Q3 2021 compared to Q2 2021.

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Highlights:

• Demand for 20 million cellular IoT chipsets will not be met in 2021 due to a supply shortage. According to IoT Analytics’ latest report on cellular IoT chipsets, the industry is expected to see a much lower than possible growth of 9% year-over-year (YoY) in 2021. At the same time, prices are expected to increase sharply.
• Qualcomm leads the global cellular IoT chipset market with a market share of 43% in 2020 (based on shipments).

IoT Analytics, a leading provider of market insights and competitive intelligence for the Internet of Things (IoT) and Industry 4.0, this month launched an in-depth cellular IoT chipset market tracker that provides a quarterly look at the revenues and shipments of 13 companies providing cellular connectivity chipsets for IoT deployments.

IoT Analytics expects the global cellular IoT chipset market to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 28% between 2021 and 2026, with significant impacts from supply issues in 2021.

What is a cellular IoT chipset?

Every connected IoT device that makes use of a cellular connection (e.g., 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G, LTE-M, and NB-IoT) uses a cellular IoT chipset. The chipset can be embedded directly into the device’s printed circuit board or into an IoT module that is placed in the device. The research presented in this article focuses on the larger of the two segments: cellular IoT chipsets embedded within an IoT module.

Current market environment: Impacted by the global chip shortage

In 2020, COVID-19 impacted both the demand and supply of chips. Supply was reduced, as production was halted at times, and supply chains and access to raw materials were not intact. In the first half of 2020, chip demand fell as uncertainty set in and budgets were frozen. In the second half of 2020, demand came back, but supply was often disrupted. This resulted in a supply shortage that first impacted the automotive industry and then extended to other segments, such as smartphones, TVs, gaming, and IoT. The lower demand in 2020 coupled with a shortage of supply at the end of the year led to a gap of 33 million cellular IoT chipsets that would have been shipped had everything gone smoothly.

In 2021, the chip shortage continues. Out of 3,000+ analyzed public companies, 11% mentioned “chip shortage” in their conference call in the second quarter (Q2) of 2021.

Commenting on the findings of the research Knud Lasse Lueth, CEO at IoT Analytics, says:

“IoT Analytics expects that there will be an additional shortage of 20 million cellular IoT chipsets due to limited production capacity and ongoing COVID-19 restrictions in some regions, which have resulted in severe supply chain issues, such as a lack of vessels and shipping containers and port congestion.”

Satyajit Sinha, senior analyst at IoT Analytics, adds: “The market is expected to grow 9% YoY in 2021 but would have grown a lot more had there been no supply constraints.”

According to market leaders TSMC and Qualcomm, the situation is likely to improve in early 2022:

“We are limited in our options until the beginning of 2022. Starting from the second half of that year, many investments will start to produce results, and the situation will improve,”
Akash Palkhiwala, CFO at Qualcomm

“Clients are preparing for a higher level of inventory to ensure supply stability due to uncertainties from geopolitics and the pandemic. As a result, our capacity will remain tight throughout the year 2021”, C. C Wei, Chief Executive Officer at TSMC

Cellular IoT chipset market : Qualcomm comfortably leading

Five players currently dominate the cellular IoT chipset market: Qualcomm, MediaTek, HiSilicon, Intel, and UNISOC. These five companies make up 93% of all 2020 global cellular IoT chipset shipments.

Qualcomm leads the market with a 43% market share (based on shipments) in 2020. Qualcomm’s share is higher on a revenue basis. In recent years, the key to the company’s market success has been its global scale and presence, its deep partnerships with module players, and its large number of carrier certifications. Qualcomm also keeps innovation cycles short, introducing new IoT chips regularly and often releasing upgrades to existing chips in cycles shorter than one year. 4G LTE IoT chipsets have driven Qualcomm’s volumes in the past, but the future is dependent on how quickly 5G takes off in the market. The IoT Analytics view is that demand for 5G is now ramping up and will be a key driver for the cellular IoT chipset market in the years to come.

In contrast to Qualcomm, volumes of MediaTek and HiSilicon are predominantly driven by NB-IoT chipsets.

Connectivity technology trends: NB-IoT, LTE-Cat 1, and 5G

The technology mix for cellular IoT connectivity remains very dynamic. In addition to the rise of 5G and the sharp decline of 2G and 3G, these are some current trends:

• NB-IoT. NB-IoT chipsets contributed to more than one-third of global cellular IoT chipset shipments in 2020.
• LTE-Cat 1. LTE-Cat 1 (a subset of 4G technology) grew 43% YoY in 2020. One chip in particular, the Qualcomm MDM9207-1 chipset, contributed majorly to the growth of LTE-Cat 1. Adoption of another chip, the UNISOC 8910DM, grew 300% in 2020 (YoY), driving the development of the newer LTE-Cat 1 bis subsegment, which now accounts for 23% of all LTE-Cat 1 shipments.
• 5G. The mass distribution of 5G chipsets is anticipated in 2021. IoT Analytics expects that 5G IoT chipsets will contribute to almost half of global cellular IoT chipset revenue in 2021, although the percentage is much smaller when looking at the market on a shipment level.

Industry adoption trends: Tracking applications and 5G in automotive

Cellular IoT connectivity technologies are present in nearly all verticals, ranging from asset tracking in the transportation, supply chain, and logistics industry to remote monitoring in the healthcare industry. Among others, our research shows two recent trends:

• Transportation and logistics use cases on the rise. The transportation, supply chain, and logistics vertical contributes to 30% of the global cellular IoT chipset shipment market. Within this segment, it was not the traditional automotive and telematics applications that grew in 2020 but rather tracking applications that helped companies locate goods in the supply chains. Shipments of chipsets for tracking applications grew 22% YoY in 2020, compared to an overall market growth of 3%.
• 5G adoption in automotive. In 2021, despite the ongoing chip shortage in the automotive sector, the adoption of 5G within the embedded automotive segment is expected to see more than 50% YoY growth.

Conclusion and outlook

With 30 billion IoT devices expected by 2025, chips are in high demand, contributing to the overall demand for IoT semiconductors. While cellular IoT makes up a small portion of those 30 billion devices, it is one of the most dynamic technology landscapes, with technology shifting toward NB-IoT and 5G and specific verticals, such as transportation, racing ahead on the adoption curve.

Due to the aforementioned disruptions, the market has seen structural changes in the last 1.5 years. Chipset vendors need to rethink their positioning regarding the technology they offer, the verticals they address, their dependencies on specific suppliers, and the sourcing of their production capacity.

In the broader scheme of things, with the market growing so much, the current supply challenges and the 20 million missing chips appear important today. However, they will matter less in a few years, when the disruptions have settled, and vendors have reacted to the structural changes. By then, 2020 and 2021 will look like a dent in the curve, nothing more.

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Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. helps lead the IoT ecosystem forward by introducing the company’s first, purpose-built Internet of Things (IoT) modem solution equipped with 5G connectivity and optimized for Industrial IoT (IIoT) applications.

The Qualcomm® 315 5G IoT Modem-RF System is a comprehensive modem-to-antenna solution designed to support the IoT ecosystem in building upgradeable LTE and 5G devices for IoT verticals, accelerate the adoption of 5G connectivity for IoT, and expand the overall opportunity for 5G in the IoT industry.

5G was conceived as a broad connectivity fabric and today the momentum is beginning to exemplify the promised impact and growth of 5G for emerging applications including IoT. Acting as a catalyst for digital transformation, Qualcomm Technologies is at the forefront enabling the ecosystem with the solutions to update existing IoT systems and make 5G for IoT a reality.

The needs of modern IoT include seamlessly transitioning wired factories to wireless with solutions capable of supporting both LTE and 5G connectivity. The Qualcomm 315 5G IoT modem was designed with industrial and enterprise applications in mind, built with premium gigabit class performance, low-power, and thermal-efficient capabilities to enable a new generation of fast, powerful and high-performing IoT solutions. The Qualcomm 315 5G IoT modem is intended to meet the needs of industry segments including: retail, energy, automation and manufacturing, precision agricultural, construction, mining, public venues, and more.

With the global expansion of 5G, the Qualcomm 315 5G IoT modem is a new solution serving the high end of IoT broadband modems, complementing Qualcomm Technologies’ existing portfolio of LTE IoT modems with a path towards 5G proliferation. Additionally, due to its reduced footprint and highly integrated RF front-end, this solution expands the portfolio, purposely designed to provide a pin to pin compatible solution for current LTE legacy modules. This provides legacy modules with ability to upgrade their solutions with no changes needed to existing hardware, minimizing development efforts, costs and providing a seamless transition from LTE to 5G.

“Qualcomm Technologies is continuously optimizing and developing industry-leading technologies and modems ranging from the most power efficient NB-IoT solutions to new products like the Qualcomm 315 5G IoT modem, purpose-built to bring 5G connectivity capabilities to IoT,” said Jeffery Torrance, senior vice president, product management, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.

“We are pleased to unveil our new 5G IoT solution which will help stimulate and scale the 5G IoT industry and enable the transitions needed for Industry 4.0. This solution will help create long-lasting devices and promote growth and expansion in the 5G IoT industry, allowing seamless integration for customers utilizing previous generations of connectivity.”

The Qualcomm 315 5G IoT Modem supports global 5G NR sub-6GHz bands and operates in stand-alone (SA) only mode, with the capability to switch to LTE as needed, and can be deployed over private or public 5G networks, leveraging network slicing or in isolation. This solution is optimal for IoT applications that can be seamlessly integrated with existing ethernet and wired technologies. The new modem comes with extended life software and hardware maintenance and support, prolonging IoT devices for the duration of their life span. This new solution will help accelerate the digital transformation of the 5G IIoT industry, proliferating 5G for IoT.

The Qualcomm 315 5G IoT modem is expected to be commercially available in the second half of 2021.

The Qualcomm 315 5G IoT Modem is a significant step for the IoT ecosystem:

Bosch : “5G is an important standard for the factory of the future. We are therefore working intensively on integrating 5G into our products. The Qualcomm 315 5G IoT Modem enables interesting new functions specifically for industrial IoT applications and helps us to open up new applications with 5G,” summarizes Dr. Steffen Haack, executive board member, Bosch Rexroth AG and responsible for development.

Fibocom : “The development of the Qualcomm 315 5G IoT Modem is an exciting step forward in the proliferation of 5G in the IoT. Coupled with Fibocom’s end-to-end IoT modules and wireless communications solutions, the Qualcomm 315 5G IoT modem will enable reliable, safe and intelligent IoT solutions across a variety of industries and vertical applications,” said Lingpeng Ying, chief executive officer, Fibocom.

HMS : “We recently released the first commercially available 5G router for industrial automation – a solution that utilizes Qualcomm Technologies’ 5G solutions. The interest for 5G in industrial applications is steadily growing and we see many advantages with the announcement of the Qualcomm 315 5G IoT modem, as it will enable a smaller formfactor for industrial devices and open up new use cases,” said Jens Jakobsen, development manager, HMS Labs, HMS Networks’ initiative for new innovation and technology.

MeiG : “As a global leading supplier of cellular modules and solutions for the IoT, we are thrilled by the announcement of the Qualcomm 315 5G IoT Modem, which will enable us to develop 5G solutions for a variety of IoT applications and mark the important expansion of 5G in the IoT ecosystem,” said Benjamin Du, chief executive officer, MeiG Smart.

Quectel : “Quectel’s new family of 5G NR modules, the RG500S and RM500S, will utilize the Qualcomm 315 5G IoT Modem to offer superior choice for 5G IoT applications,” said Patrick Qian, chief executive officer, Quectel. “The two module series will cover 5G NR sub-6GHz bands in SA mode and LTE bands word wide, enabling them to deliver high data rate, low end-to-end latency, and reliable connectivity to a vast range of IoT segments including industrial IoT, smart energy, private 5G networks, and many others. The new modules are highly compatible with existing 5G and LTE modules, allowing customers to accelerate their 5G designs with fast time-to-market. We are very proud to work with Qualcomm Technologies as we continue to enable the growth of the Internet of Things.”

Schneider Electric : “We are excited by the launch of Qualcomm 315 5G IoT modem which addresses the specific needs for massive bandwidth, reliability, and performance across industries. This technology has the potential to become a catalyst of digitization, helping unlock unprecedented opportunities and efficiencies in innovative 5G industrial applications,” said Benoit Jacquemin, innovation director industry business, Schneider Electric.

Siemens : “Siemens and Qualcomm Technologies have a longstanding collaboration focused on technological cooperation in wireless communication technologies. With the release of products such as the Qualcomm 315 5G IoT Modem, Qualcomm Technologies shows its strong commitment to drive the digital transformation of industry and enables us to develop state-of-the-art Industrial 5G products,” said Sander Rotmensen, director industrial wireless communication, Siemens AG, Digital Industries.

Sunsea : “SUNSEA AIoT is committed to using 5G+ AIoT advanced technology to developing all-in-one solutions for the IoT solutions from smart community to intelligent industrial application. Through the introduction of the Qualcomm 315 5G IoT Modem, Qualcomm Technologies is enabling us to develop next-generation solutions, provide end-to-end digital solutions, and help enterprises keep leading of the industry,” said Tao Yang, chief executive officer, SUNSEA AIoT.

Telit : “The introduction of the Qualcomm 315 5G IoT modem represents an important milestone that paves the way for bringing 5G 3GPP Release 16 connectivity to the 5G IoT industry,” said Marco Contento, vice president, 5G technologies, product management, Telit. “This new system will serve a number of commercial and industrial use cases where until now there hasn’t been a 5G connectivity solution available, in particular energy distribution, smart grid technologies, and industrial control and automation. And, because the Qualcomm 315 5G IoT modem also supports applications currently served by LTE networks, it provides customers with a future-proof path for 5G device migration.”

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CEVA-Dragonfly NB2 turnkey solution is industry’s first and only licensable NB-IoT IP to receive full certification from one of the world’s largest mobile network operators.

CEVA, Inc., the leading licensor of wireless connectivity and smart sensing technologies, announced today that its Dragonfly NB2 turnkey NB-IoT solution has achieved full certification from Deutsche Telekom, one of the world’s leading integrated telecommunications companies.

The monumental milestone ensures that Dragonfly NB2 IP licensees can significantly simplify and accelerate their NB-IoT chipset certification for use on Deutsche Telekom’s networks around the world.

Ange Aznar, Vice President and General Manager of the Wireless IoT Business Unit at CEVA, said:

“Achieving certification from a reputable and stringent operator like Deutsche Telekom is a crucial milestone for the maturity of our DragonFly NB2 solution.”

“Licensable, certified NB-IoT solutions play a critical role in the mass adoption of NB-IoT by lowering the cost and entry barriers for semiconductors and OEMs to include cellular LPWAN connectivity in their chip designs. We are very proud of our engineering team for delivering a fully qualified turn-key solution, including baseband, protocol stack and RF. The Deutsche Telekom operator certification is another major step in our mission to help our LPWAN customers get to market faster with low risk and we look forward to seeing CEVA-powered NB-IoT devices running on Deutsche Telekom’s networks.”

“Deutsche Telekom is pleased to certify CEVA’s Dragonfly NB2 IP solution,” said Uday Patil, Head of IoT Devices at Deutsche Telekom.

“The certification of the Dragonfly NB2 platform secures out-of-the-box interoperability and higher connectivity quality for the next generation of modules and devices being developed to operate on our networks. By using Dragonfly NB2, Deutsche Telekom anticipates that licensees can reduce their time-to-market and development costs for a successful deployment, fast-tracking through Deutsche Telekom’s certification process.”

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Sequans Communications S.A. and NXP® Semiconductors are collaborating to bring LTE for IoT connectivity to NXP’s microcontroller (MCU) ecosystem to accelerate the adoption of cellular connectivity.

The companies are combining NXP’s LPC5500 series microcontroller with Sequans’ Monarch GM01Q and NB01Q modules to give IoT device makers a development platform that speeds time to market for connected IoT devices. NXP customers who are using the LPC5500 series MCU now have a single solution to add LTE-M or NB-IoT connectivity to their products.

Didier Dutronc, Sequans CMO, said:

“With this NXP/Sequans collaboration, we’re offering a best-in-class LTE for IoT plus MCU solution that is based on Sequans’ expertise in cellular IoT connectivity and NXP’s expertise in low-power MCUs.”

“The result is an easy-to-use solution for IoT device development or prototyping that will work on LTE networks around the world on supported operators in the USA, Canada, Japan, Australia, and Europe.”

Sequans’ Monarch GM01Q and NB01Q modules are based on Sequans’ industry-leading Monarch chip platform. The modules support 17 LTE bands for worldwide connectivity and include an LTE-optimized transceiver and a Single-SKU RF front end. They deliver industry-leading low power consumption with rock bottom power consumption at 1uA. Monarch GM01Q supports both LTE-M and NB-IoT, and NB01Q is optimized for NB-IoT only.

“Sequans’ leadership is well-established and their LTE for IoT chip solutions are well-proven,” said Tom Pannell, senior director of marketing for connectivity solutions at NXP. “As LTE for IoT demand grows across our customer base, having a pre-integrated platform that enables device makers to easily add LTE-M or NB-IoT connectivity to their designs will do much to drive the market. Combining the low power capabilities of Monarch and the high performance of LPC5500 series MCU results in a powerful solution for key market segments such as smart meters.”

The NXP LPC5500 series development board provides an ideal platform for product evaluation or prototyping. It is based on the Arm® Cortex®-M33 architecture and includes a high-performance onboard debug probe, audio subsystem, accelerometer and several options for add-on boards for networking, sensors, displays, and other interfaces.

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UBX-R5 Cat-M1 achieves certification under new GCF programme.

The Global Certification Forum (GCF) has today announced that u-blox is the first company to certify a product under its new IoT chipset certification scheme (started in January this year).

This latest GCF programme is designed for chipsets covering NB-IoT and LTE-M and facilitates the easy integration of embedded chipsets into modules and devices. The u-blox UBX-R5 Cat-M1 chipset is the first product to achieve certification under the new scheme.

GCF IoT chipset certification was added to the existing IoT platforms and IoT modules programme at the beginning of the year, to enable certification of chipsets based on GCF approved test platforms under defined quality requirements, including GCF approval of the chipset manufacturer’s design test facilities. This gives the IoT industry a new level of confidence when deploying and integrating a myriad of different devices across multiple communication technologies and is the first in a number of initiatives which will be launched by GCF in 2020 to enable the confidence and growth of the IoT market.

Andreas Thiel, Head of Product Centers, Co-founder at u‑blox, said:

“We are delighted that GCF has recognized the quality of our UBX-R5 LTE-M/NB-IoT chipset. This certification, a first under GCF’s IoT chipset certification initiative, demonstrates that we are setting a new benchmark for IoT connectivity, while paving the way for robust secure communication from the chip all the way to the cloud.”

With the rapid expansion of the IoT industry, the introduction of a programme that demonstrates industry-recognized compliance with 3GPP standards is critical to ensuring the sustained successful deployment of the IoT industry. This is particularly important for mission-critical or long life-cycle IoT applications that the UBX-R5 Cat-M1 is intended for, also helping to shorten time-to-market and significantly reduce costs.

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