Through this program, selected partners will be able to operate a free-to-use LPWAN network to test and demonstrate IoT products and services
Digital Catapult has announced the expansion of its Things Connected low powered wide area network program in the UK.
Digital Catapult, a nonprofit body that focuses on helping UK businesses to scale up, said that the expansion is expected to deliver coverage in up to five additional regions of the U.K which in turn will extend support for the creation, development and testing of new internet of things services and applications.
Digital Catapult has now announced plans to manage a further £540,000 ($714,000) of investment, and is accepting bids for funding from regional network consortia, including councils and enterprises.
Things Connected is a low power wide area network (LPWAN) and innovation program established in 2016 and now has network coverage across Greater London as well as Milton Keynes, Cambridge and Bradford.
Selected partners will use the network to run innovation programs for UK startups to develop IoT solutions.
The program will allow the selected partners to implement and operate a free-to-use regional LPWAN network enabling new product testing, experimentation, demonstration and piloting of IoT products and services. Successful bidders will receive an allocation of the funding and LPWAN hardware, along with access to expertise and technical training from Digital Catapult.
LPWAN enables long-range wireless data communication between connected devices even in hard to reach areas, Digital Catapult explained.
The body also said that the value of IoT services could reach between $100 billion and $300 billion for the UK by 2025.
“Through our Things Connected program we are building an ecosystem to foster the development of new innovative products and services and increase the number of U.K companies delivering on the internet of things ”, said Jeremy Silver, CEO Digital Catapult. “Extending the initiative to become more of a nationwide program is a critical step in this journey. We see a huge opportunity for the whole of the U.K in the IoT space to increase our global competitiveness. We are looking to engage with forward thinking organizations on the roll-out of LPWAN as this will play a critical role in bringing the U.K to the forefront of IoT development.”
