Actility, the industry leader in Low Power Wide Area Networks (LPWAN), and Lattelecom, the market-leading Latvian telecommunications and IT provider, have worked together to begin the roll-out of a nationwide LoRaWAN network in Latvia. The network has been successfully tested in Riga, where full coverage will be deployed as the first stage of the project, aiming to make Latvia’s capital one of the smartest cities in Europe. Wider roll out will continue based on interest from city authorities and enterprises, with national coverage expected to be completed in 2018.
“The new infrastructure will allow smart devices to be connected to a single network, enabling services like smart metering, utility network monitoring, remotely controlling street light, smart waste management and other city level services,” says Kerli Gabrilovica, Lattelecom Chief Development and marketing officer: “Latvia’s capital has many advantages for introducing new technologies, including strong existing infrastructure – according to the European Digital City Index for 2016, Riga is in the Top 3 for Europe’s best digital infrastructure. In the index, Riga has the 4th fastest internet speed, the 5th lowest broadband price and the 2nd highest availability for optical internet. And the municipal government is open to new technologies – together we have created free WiFi infrastructure that has made Riga Europe’s WiFi leader,” she continues.
“We’re delighted to be working with Lattelecom to enable their network in Riga and eventually throughout Latvia,” says Actility CEO Mike Mulica. “The LoRAWAN network will leverage Lattelecom’s existing world-class optical data network. This new network joins the rapidly growing number of national-scale LoRaWAN networks built on our ThingPark platform, clearly demonstrating how well it meets the needs of communication service providers for large-scale deployments. And becoming part of the global ThingPark network community means that Lattelecom’s customer in cities and enterprises will be able to benefit from access to the whole ThingPark ecosystem for partners, developers and e-commerce.”
The network infrastructure, powered by Actility’s ThingPark Wireless IoT solution, enables the implementation of Smart City solutions, Machine-to-Machine connectivity and new digital applications. In Smart City applications, the new network will enable offer services including remote reading of meters, acquisition of environmental data, street light control, smart parking systems or intelligent waste management solutions.
ENDS
About LoRaWAN™
LoRaWAN is designed to connect low-cost, battery-operated sensors over long distances in harsh environments that were previously too challenging or cost prohibitive to connect. A LoRaWAN gateway deployed on a building or tower can connect to sensors more than 10km away or to water meters deployed underground or in basements. The LoRaWAN protocol offers unique and unequaled benefits in terms of bi-directionality, security, mobility and accurate localization that are not addressed by other LPWAN technologies. These benefits will enable the diverse use cases and business models that will enable deployments of large scale LPWAN IoT networks globally.
About Lattelecom
Lattelecom is the largest Latvian telecommunications and IT Company. Lattelecom is an innovative company offering the widest range of opportunities for a modern life – starting with the optical Internet, the speed of which reaches 1Gbit per second, the most advanced television in the Baltics and the safest data centre in Northern Europe, the data transmission main TransBaltic Gateway connecting Frankfurt and China, as well as more than 70 IT solutions for businesses of any size.
About Actility & ThingPark™
Actility is the industry leader in LPWA (Low Power Wide Area) large-scale infrastructure and the innovator behind the ThingPark IoT Solution platform. ThingPark is a carrier-grade IoT platform, which enables service providers to accelerate their IoT strategy and go-to-market. ThingPark Wireless delivers long-range networks for low-power sensors and devices. ThingPark Mash-up provides IoT protocol and data mediation services, enabling web applications to connect seamlessly with data from a vast range of different sensors. ThingPark Marketplace is at the heart of an ecosystem of certified IoT devices, connectivity, and application partners. Actility is a founding member of the LoRa Alliance.
For more information, please contact:
Lattelecom:
Zandra Sadre, Head of PR Departament: zanda.sadre@lattelecom.lv
Actility:
Anne van Gemert: anne.vangemert@actility.com
Learn more about the LoRaWAN technology by downloading the Actility “What is LoRaWAN” white paper