KT has joined forces with Nokia Networks to set up what it describes as Korea's first Internet of Things (IoT) lab in a bid to help the South Korea-based operator fulfil its goal of becoming "the number one player in Korea's IoT market".
The lab will provide IoT-related technical expertise and knowledge to small and medium-sized partner companies to help foster a connected digital ecosystem.
This initiative is based on a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed by both companies during this year's Mobile World Congress (MWC). KT and Nokia Networks also agreed to implement the world's first LTE-M field trial for the interconnection of sensors by the fourth quarter of this year.
Yun Kyoung-Lim, head of future convergence business office at KT, commented that with Nokia Networks, the operator is working "to hasten our transformation into an ICT powerhouse."
He added: "Furthermore, this lab is a strong iteration of our vision to become the number one player in Korea's IoT market. Our efforts are aimed at encouraging greater participation by domestic companies, which are a crucial factor in driving the change towards a creative IoT-based economy."
The companies will create a virtual environment to enable interworking and network verification on Nokia Networks' LTE infrastructure. The lab will also provide technical assistance to small and medium-sized Korean partner companies to help them enter global markets.
Andrew Cope, head of Korea at Nokia Networks, said: "After showcasing the world's first LTE-M for interconnection of sensors, we have now created Korea's first IoT lab, a solid proof-point of our commitment to standardise LTE-M and create a strong and sustainable IoT ecosystem."
KT also recently announced it has teamed up with Korea-based vendor Samsung to combine Wi-Fi and LTE in a gigabit-speed mobile service called GiGA LTE. The service, which is now available for Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge devices, offers download speeds of up to 1.17 Gbps, according to the Korea Herald.
In addition to downloading over 15 times faster than traditional LTE, GiGA LTE also boasts upload speeds that outstrip tri-band broadband LTE-A--Korea's fastest existing service--ten times over by combining 3-Band Carrier Aggregation LTE and Wi-Fi.
For more:
- see this Nokia Networks release
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