AT&T Extends LTE-M Roaming to Canada for Internet of Things

New agreements with top Canadian carriers create 1st North American   LTE-M footprint; expands AT&T’s largest LTE-M ecosystem in the world

Businesses will be able to operate Internet of Things devices and applications across Canada and the U.S. now that AT&T has signed separate reciprocal roaming agreements with Bell, Rogers and TELUS.

Bell, Rogers and TELUS operate cellular networks that cover most of the 37 million people in Canada. Each have LTE-M up and running across their national 4G LTE networks. In addition to enabling AT&T customers to roam into each of their respective regions in Canada, these reciprocal agreements also enable Bell, Rogers and TELUS to expand their LTE-M footprint into the U.S.

This will allow low-power IoT devices such as smart wearables, kitchen appliances, trackers, patient monitors and alarm panels to operate continent-wide in tandem with AT&T.

LTE-M enables a host of IoT applications with lower costs, compact modules, longer battery life and coverage extension. The network operates within licensed spectrum with carrier-grade security and can support firmware and software updates, mobility and voice-over LTE services. LTE-M will be compatible with 5G deployments.

“More and more of our enterprise customers are launching IoT applications across international boundaries. Having access to the first North American footprint for LTE-M through these roaming agreements will help them simplify deployments, scale their IoT plans, and put them on the path to 5G,” said Chris Penrose, President, Advanced Mobility and Enterprise Solutions, AT&T. “This is an important milestone toward a globalized IoT.”

AT&T launched LTE-M across the U.S. in 2017, followed by Mexico. We also launched a nationwide NB-IoT network in the U.S. in the second quarter of 2019 and expect to begin deployment in Mexico by the end of 2019. NB-IoT is a complementary low-power IoT network.

LTE-M network deployments have grown globally during the last several years to enable a new generation of IoT applications and services AT&T, KPN, Orange and Swisscom activated LTE-M roaming across their respective IoT networks in Europe and North America earlier this year. 

AT&T’s LTE-M network and roaming agreements now cover the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Combined with existing roaming agreements covering parts of Europe,  AT&T enterprise customers now have access to the largest LTE-M ecosystem in the world.

For more on AT&T’s LTE-M network, check out this link.