Automated Transcript
Hello. My name is Steve Lowe. I’m Product Director for Mobile at Gamma, and we’re here today for the Gamma Mobile podcast. I’m joined by my colleague, Rob Kittler.
Hello.
And from Germany, Christian Krug.
Hi. Hi, everyone. First of all, I’m pleased that I can talk to you about the important topic of IoT and eSIM functionality and its almost unlimited possibilities. My name is Christian Krug. I’m Managing Director of Epsilon Telecommunications in Germany, a wholly owned company within Gamma Group. We are the market leader in the B2B marketing of connectivity solutions from the three most important network operators in Germany: Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone, and Telefonica.
That’s great. Thanks, Christian. Gamma acquired the Epsilon business 2 or 3 years ago now, and it’s been an excellent addition to our business.
So, Christian, we’re here today to talk about eSIM. Firstly, people might want to know, what is an eSIM?
I’m glad we’re talking about eSIM, Steve, because I keep getting asked about it from partners and their customers. The mobile inbox that comes into Gamma that we look after here, I keep being asked about it. So, it can’t arrive quickly enough for us. People think they know what it is because they’re used to it from some vendors, but I’m interested
When we’re going to release it and what difference it makes for some of our partners.
Yeah. Well, actually, it’s quite interesting because we have had the eSIM functionality for about a year within Gamma, and we’ve used it within our enterprise business and for key partners who have been demanding it. We’ve not had a fully industrialised solution where people can order eSIMs necessarily through our portal, but we’ve had a workaround solution for those partners. And that’s allowed us to really test the functionality in detail before we roll this out more widely. It’s working fantastically well. So I think your partners are in for a treat when we launch it.
I’m looking forward to it. I know it ticks that big environmental box for a lot of people that they’re keen on. It’s ticking a box as far as moving forward with some different manufacturers are concerned. I know that their end customers are looking to upgrade some of their devices, so that’s important to them. And I suppose it’s also important to me and my colleagues who are selling here at Gamma because it’s a step forward all the time. I know we’re always trying to make our network better, make our product better, make our products better. So it’s one of those major steps, I suppose. So proud that it’s going to release in the near future. So probably by the time people are watching this, I’m guessing there’ll be a big marketing push in the next month or two.
Yeah. I think it’s probably important that we discuss what it is, you know, because we talked about the environmental business benefits. It’s better for end customers as well. The way it works is that there is still a SIM chip, so it’s still a piece of physical hardware, but it’s actually soldered into the device by the manufacturer. When the customer selects their airtime package, whether we do a deal with them or the channel partner sells them Gamma Mobile, they will be able to download the eSIM profile. The electronic profile is downloaded over the air and onto the physical hardware, and then everything just works as normal. The service fires up just as if you put a physical SIM into the SIM slot in a device.
But the benefit from an ESG point of view is that when the customer wants to change their provider, they can do that without having to put a new SIM card into the device. So you use the same SIM chip, but a different profile is just downloaded onto that SIM.
So the SIM isn’t affiliated with any particular network when it’s in the device, naturally, I suppose. And then we force or push that profile down to that soldered-in chip.
Exactly.
And I know that the likes of Apple have had eSIM for a little while and Samsung have had eSIM for a little while. I presume all the other manufacturers are going to come good and start to follow this trend.
I’m not supposed to be asking the questions, but maybe I’ll ask this one to both of you. Are we going to see it across other types of devices like routers and wearables? Because I know we do a lot with those as far as SIM cards are concerned.
Yeah, definitely. I think maybe Christian is best to answer that one because he’s been driving IoT within the German market for the last 3 or 4 years. So I think you’re probably very well aware of the IoT benefits driven by eSIM.
Yeah. The eSIM functionality will open up a wide range of opportunities that will have a significant positive impact on IoT growth. Currently, mobile phone connections are made without an eSIM here in Germany especially. This means that each network operator has its own SIM cards, and you have to choose the network operator you want to use in each country before you set up the device. However, if eSIM chips like Steve mentioned, from fusion IoT are installed right from the start, any available network operator can be selected or exchanged on site worldwide without the need to change SIM cards. Even in the event of a network disruption, an available network can be made available over the air or imported via profile.
I think it’s a great point. One real example of this is street lights. We have a client putting SIMs in devices at the top of street lights to measure the level of light. The idea is to only turn the street light on when the light level falls below a certain point. The problem at the moment for many local authorities is that street lights are turned on based on time, sometimes wasting electricity on bright days. The problem comes when the provider wants to change the network coverage provider because they then have to climb up 100,000 lampposts to swap out the physical SIMs, which is unfeasible. So it makes it difficult for them to get the best coverage deal, the best commercial deal.
That’s a great example. Christian, you probably have more IoT use cases for eSIMs from the work you’ve done over the last few years. Any that stand out to you?
Yes. I have another example for the usability of eSIM. We have a customer, Alps Alpine, a manufacturer of routers for postal services worldwide. Previously, you had to use different SIM cards for each country to get the coverage for narrowband IoT. With the eSIM functionality, you can install the eSIM chip in the router and provide it globally, selecting the narrowband IoT provider in any country over the air. This offers massive cost efficiency for producing the routers for postal services worldwide.
That’s a brilliant example. So we’re putting the right coverage provider onto the SIM based on location. If the router is in Germany, you’d use one provider; if it travels to the UK, you might use a different provider, or even to India or Mexico. All that can be managed over the air. The stock management benefits are huge as you’re manufacturing routers for the global market. Your overall forecast is what you look at, and it doesn’t matter which country the routers land in because you will apply the correct coverage.
And we’re not shipping plastic around the world with physical SIM cards either. From a native Gamma Mobile perspective in the UK, I suppose I’m biased as I work in that department, but I realise some partners may use other networks. With an eSIM capable device, they could have their primary connection that I’m trying to displace and prove that our network is better and faster. With an eSIM device in a dual SIM handset, they can test Gamma Mobile, realise it’s faster and better, then choose to switch.
Yeah, that’s a great example. It leads me to a proof of concept we’re running with Christian’s team. We’re running a proof of concept for one of the most recognisable brands in the UK. They have 2,500 to 3,000 vehicles that travel around the UK, and connectivity is essential for them. If they lose connectivity, it costs them a huge amount of money. We’ve installed routers in several vans for this trial. These routers have two SIM slots. The primary SIM slot has the Gamma SIM on Three UK, handling 98% of traffic. The second SIM slot has a Fusion IoT SIM from Christian’s team. When we lose the connection on the Gamma Three service, the router switches to the Fusion SIM, which gives access to other UK networks and connects to the strongest signal. This works fabulously well, and the client is delighted. The primary Gamma Three UK SIM provides great coverage, but the seamless handover to the Fusion SIM ensures connectivity is maintained. That additional 2% coverage makes a huge difference to their operational costs.
It’s not just routers then, is it? People can have a dual SIM handset with Gamma as the primary and Fusion IoT as the secondary for those 2-3% coverage areas.
Yes, exactly. It’s ideal for lone workers in remote locations where coverage isn’t great on any particular network. Sometimes, you just need to connect to any network because the consequences of not having connectivity can be serious.
We talk about our coverage and connectivity with eSIM. I want customers and partners to thrive and connect SIMs, but they’re giving a solution that benefits the end customer and the engineering team. They can turn around to their end customer and say, “We’re covered,” giving them reassurance. It’s not just smart technology but a step forward for mobile connectivity, helping businesses win contracts and providing reassurance across different elements. There must be many verticals where this applies.
Definitely. We’re talking about increased efficiency for businesses and increased convenience for consumers. This goes right to the heart of business success. There are endless use cases for businesses, and the digitalisation of the world with Fusion IoT and Gamma Mobile and eSIM functionality provides the coverage and data connections needed globally. This offers a wide range of opportunities for partners and customers, creating win-win situations.
A really exciting thing is that through Fusion, we’ll be adding satellite connectivity this year as well.
Yes, we have satellite connectivity over Fusion IoT combined with other providers. We started with Telefonica. With satellite IoT, you get 100% coverage globally, offering huge opportunities for asset tracking and other tracking aspects worldwide.
Exactly. In those lone worker situations, utility companies with dams in remote locations, and areas without terrestrial mobile coverage, everything needs connectivity. Having the reassurance of satellite connectivity if needed is hugely important.
I’m excited about handsets and ensuring our partners’ customers can access the best 5G in the UK. Christian is excited about worldwide router connections. But how do we get the profile onto the device?
Let’s talk about the phone first. The most common way is to create a QR code, which can be emailed to a customer if they’ve got a second screen, or in some cases, posted to the customer, which is not a great experience. Some operators print QR codes on plastic cards that look like SIM cards and send those. You scan the QR code with your phone, extracting something called a matching ID. This authentication code is sent to the operator’s digital warehouse, which matches it and allows the profile download to the SIM on the device. We’ll be launching an application this year within Gamma that allows us to trigger the download of the SIM profile from the phone, making it a simple, seamless process.
How long does this take? Is it minutes? Seconds?
Seconds. You can get a number live in seconds.
That’s exciting. I can get a number live in seconds. One use case we’re starting to see is travel SIMs. You book your holiday, and along with your flights and hotel, they offer connectivity. You book your connectivity and receive a QR code to scan and download your local or roaming profile. When you arrive in your destination, you have native or good roaming call charges within minutes.
That’s a great service for travel agencies, offering an add-on service for their customers, creating a win-win situation for all.
Another use case is security, particularly for lone workers or security guards in areas with difficult coverage. The Fusion IoT SIM provides access to all networks, picking up the strongest signal. Combining this with mobile device management and geofencing, security management can draw a geofence around the security guard’s location and track their movements. If they go outside the geofence or stop moving unexpectedly, it can indicate a problem, and an alert can be sent. Some devices also have shock detection, sending alerts if someone falls.
With Fusion IoT, you can build your own network with a virtual private network on the profile, ensuring security by preventing access from the free internet. This is important for government use cases and other security-sensitive applications.
That’s great. We’re protecting devices with mobile device management and routing traffic securely, making it difficult to hack and intercept. It’s perfect for various verticals, including government, legal firms, and accountancy, where data security is critical.
We’ve made a strong case for eSIM here. We need to understand why network operators haven’t driven this. In Germany, eSIM adoption has been slow because carriers don’t want customers to have the freedom to switch easily. If you have a SIM card from a carrier, you can only use their network. With eSIM, customers can change providers by scanning a QR code, which carriers don’t want because they want to keep customers within their network.
As an MVNO, we want our partners to give the best 5G to their customers and get the best value and speeds. We’re bucking the trend by launching eSIM because it’s the right thing to do. It makes switching easier for customers, ensures the right connectivity, and offers environmental benefits by reducing plastic waste.
Exactly. It’s good for the end customer and makes switching easier. We can ensure the right connectivity at the right time, and the environmental benefits are clear. In the UK, we had a precursor with mobile number portability in 1998. Operators made it difficult to switch, but Gamma’s focus is on doing the best thing for the customer.
It’s exciting to think about the future of eSIM and IoT. With more devices and increased connectivity, there are ethical considerations around data privacy. Technology is advancing rapidly, and we need to ensure safeguards are in place to protect individuals’ privacy and data.
Governments and regulators need to step up and ensure things are done ethically for the benefit of humanity. Technology can be transformative, but we need to keep pace with safeguards.
As long as we bear in mind that technology can work for us, we can ensure we’re moving in the right direction.
We support the right connectivity for the best use cases in real time. Our business is to provide the best connection. What people do with this connectivity is a societal issue. We provide the connection, not the content.
There are plenty of positive use cases for what we’re doing, benefiting businesses and humanity. We need to focus on ensuring we have the right safeguards in place as technology converges with artificial intelligence.
I confess I didn’t think we’d end up discussing AI when we started talking about eSIM. It seems to come up all the time, putting a bit of a shudder through me. Initially, I thought about handsets and routers and how easy life could be. Now we’re talking about humanity.
That’s how these conversations evolve. But also, AI needs a connection. You can’t have AI without connectivity. Our job is to provide the right connection in the right location with the right application.
That was almost a rhyme, Steve. It could be a rap song.
Okay, guys. Thank you very much. That’s it from us for this episode. It’s been a really interesting discussion. Great to get the insights of Rob and Christian. Thank you, guys, for spending the time, and we’ll see you for the next episode.
Thank you very much.
