The LoRa® Alliance is one of the fastest growing Internet of Things (IoT) alliances. Launched in April to define and promote a low power, secure, carrier grade standard for low power wide area IoT connectivity, LoRa® Alliance membership has surpassed 130 members in just six months. These companies, which include chip and module vendors, network software developers, OEMs and network operators, are all working together to develop an open specification for the next generation of IoT networks and devices. The Alliance named Geoff Mulligan chairman to lead the fast-paced growth and drive the specification work.

Mulligan helped design IPv6 and created the 6lowpan protocol, which allows the smallest devices and low-power devices to participate in the IoT. He has worked on IoT technology since 2001, serving at the White House as a Presidential Innovation Fellow working with National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) on the IoT and Additive Manufacturing, and is the U.S. representative to the ISO Smart and Sustainable Cities Strategic Advisory Group. Internet pioneer Vint Cerf referred to Mulligan as the “father of the embedded Internet.” 

‘The LoRa® technology and the LoRaWAN™ specification are a critical missing piece for the widespread deployment of the Internet of Things,’ Mulligan said. ‘And because the LoRaWAN™ specification is open, it provides a phenomenal foundation for businesses and operators to develop business models for deployment that best meet the needs of the specific applications, including smart energy, intelligent transportation, industrial manufacturing, commercial building management, and smart cities.’

Released in June, LoRaWAN™ is becoming the ubiquitous standard for secure, carrier grade low power wide area networks. It is the first LPWAN protocol for sensor, base station and network server providers and will provide interoperability security for network operators deploying large multi-tenanted open networks running multiple applications as well as private networks. Open House Companies interested in LoRa® Alliance membership and LoRa® technology are invited to attend an open house in Rotterdam, Netherlands, November 9-10, hosted by KPN and Proximus. 

The open house will feature the LoRa® Alliance roadmap, technology announcements and exclusive live demonstrations, and the launch of the LoRaWAN™ Certification Program. There will be a marketplace for members and other stakeholders that will showcase the entire ecosystem from the sensors to the application. The open house will be held in conjunction with the Alliance’s all-member meeting.

“As a member of the LoRa® Alliance we are proud to launch a LoRa® network in Rotterdam and The Hague soon and we plan national coverage in The Netherlands in 2016. LoRa® will definitely boost useful applications and the development of the Internet of Things in general,” said Jasper Snijder, EVP new business at KPN. “As co-host of the LoRa® Open House we are pleased to welcome potential parties and LoRa® partners in Rotterdam.” 

“The LoRa® Alliance is very valuable for Proximus as it offers the perfect combination of a technology responding to our customers’ needs and an open ecosystem of players in line with Proximus’ innovation principles,” said Geert Standaert, CTO for Proximus. “Proximus recently successfully launched its commercial offer for Internet of Things via its LoRa® network. With our unique end-to-end LoRa® offering we enable companies in many industries to be more efficient through improved and simplified business processes and to innovate faster through the development of new services.”