Telstra activates nationwide NB-IoT network in Australia

Australian telecoms operator Telstra announced it deployed narrowband technology in its IoT network in major cities and many regional towns across the country. The operator said the NB-IoT deployment adds to an existing 3 million square kilometers of LTE-M coverage it turned on in August 2017. With this new launch, Telstra claimed to be the only carrier in Australia and one of the first carriers in the world to offer both Narrowband and Cat M1 IoT technologies.Telstra chief operations officer, Robyn Denholm, said Narrowband technology would accelerate the adoption of IoT in Australia. “We already offer our customers Australia’s largest and fastest mobile network and with our IoT network now we have added the ability to support millions of new devices like sensors, trackers and alarms operating at very low data rates that can sit inside machines and vehicles, reach deep inside buildings and have a battery life of years rather than hours and days,” the executive said.