Prague, Brno and Ostrava already covered by the SIGFOX network

All regional capitals will be covered by the end of March 2016
Specific solutions will be introduced in the second quarter
Customers are interested in remote meter reading, Smart City, location tracking and facility management

T-Mobile and SimpleCell Networks have already covered Czech Republic’s three largest cities –Prague, Brno and Ostrava – with the SIGFOX network. The other regional capitals – České Budějovice, Hradec Králové, Jihlava, Karlovy Vary, Liberec, Olomouc, Pardubice, Plzeň, Ústí nad Labem and Zlín – will follow by the end of March. Last year, both partners announced plans to roll out the network for the Internet of Things throughout Czech Republic by the end of 2016.

In addition to network deployment, T-Mobile is preparing to commercially launch the service connected with an offer of specific solutions, which the operator plans to introduce in the second quarter of 2016. “We are currently testing or preparing joint testing with several prospective customers,” says Milan Hába, Vice President Technology & Business Innovations at T-Mobile, adding: “We now see the primary potential in applications related to remote reading of utilities meters, such as electricity, gas and water.”

Apart from the cost savings associated with automated remote meter reading instead of manual reading, customers will surely appreciate the quality of SIGFOX coverage. Particularly in cases where meters (especially water meters) are installed, for example, in underground shafts, it was not always possible to read them remotely by means of the current network technologies. Other advantages include low electricity consumption – the devices are powered autonomously by batteries allowing long service life without the necessity of being replaced or recharged for many years – and easy installation. 

Other applications that customers are greatly interested in include, for example:

• Water leakage detection
• Smart City – a broad range of different solutions, such as sensors detecting parking availability, remaining capacity of litter bins, etc. In particular, the operator plans to start a trial operation of the parking availability solution in several cities in the Czech Republic.
• Location tracking – mainly in applications where it can be difficult to ensure power supply (rail freight cars, containers and cargo in general)
• Facility management – monitoring of whether cleaning has been completed or a security check conducted

The SIGFOX network is being built and operated in the Czech Republic by SimpleCell Networks. T-Mobile is in charge of installing SIGFOX technologies on its mobile base stations and is also responsible for supervising and maintaining the network. T-Mobile will also offer to its customers solutions using SIGFOX access for different uses.

The SIGFOX network is installed on standard mobile base stations and allows economical and energy-efficient transmission of small data volumes over long distances. This removes barriers to broad implementation of IoT and M2M solutions and significantly extends the battery life as well as the service life of connected devices. The global SIGFOX network is being expanded by means of the SIGFOX Network Operator™ partnership program, which currently covers more than one million square kilometres. The company is based in Labège, France, has offices in Paris and branches in San Francisco and Madrid.

T-Mobile Czech Republic, a member of the international telecommunications group Deutsche Telekom, has almost 6.2 million customers, the number-one operator in the Czech market. T-Mobile is an integrated operator: in addition to telecommunications services, it offers comprehensive ICT solutions not only for companies, but also for other organizations and individuals. It provides outstanding services in the high-speed network, which was proved repeatedly by benchmark testing performed by umlaut (former P3) with Best-in-Test seal.

T-Mobile Czech Republic places emphasis on taking a responsible approach to the environment and society. It adheres to fair business practices, helps beneficial applications and services to see the light of day, supports non-profit organizations, small businesses and individuals, and lends a helping hand whenever crisis situations arise. The company’s employees serve as volunteers in many places across the entire Czech Republic.

More information about the company is available at www.t-mobile.cz, www.t-press.cz (the portal for journalists) and www.t-mobile.cz/pomahame (information on the company’s CSR activities).

Contact details of the press unit: press@t-press.cz.