Senet and Helium broaden LoRaWan access

  • September 22, 2021
  • Steve Rogerson

Cloud-based software and services provider Senet and wireless network company Helium have announced network roaming integration, broadening access to public LoRaWan connectivity for IoT applications throughout the USA.

The Helium network, also known as the People’s Network, joins a growing number of network operators, radio access network (RAN) partners and network infrastructure providers partnering with Senet to ensure that LoRaWan connectivity can be accessed when and where it is needed, and at the optimal cost.

Senet operates a national public, carrier-grade LoRaWan and, through this roaming integration, its customers deploying enterprise and consumer-grade devices now have expanded access to public network coverage provided by over 175,000 Helium-compatible hotspots deployed by individuals throughout the USA.

This network access is available from Senet under its extended coverage offering and is supported by Senet network management services, delivering reliability and responsiveness for scaled IoT applications.

For Helium-compatible hotspot owners, this partnership provides an opportunity for increased network traffic generated by high-density IoT applications being deployed by Senet customers, such as asset tracking, logistics and supply chain monitoring, environmental monitoring, and municipal services. These users represent well over one billion transactions processed on the Senet network annually. Accumulated data transfer and proof-of-coverage transactions earn hotspot owners HNT cryptocurrency for their contribution to building and maintaining the Helium network infrastructure.

“Our collaboration with the Helium network demonstrates Senet’s commitment to leading through a combination of innovation and partnerships,” said Bruce Chatterley, CEO of Senet. “Helium created a unique and complementary business model for deploying LoRaWans and the combination of extended network coverage and the potential economic incentive of HNT puts Senet and the Helium network in a leading position to move the market a step closer to pervasive low power wide area network coverage for IoT applications throughout the USA.”

Amir Haleem, Helium’s CEO, added: “Senet’s dominant position in the commercial LoRaWan market and experience with scaled IoT deployments are examples of the success we look for as we partner to deliver value to the Helium ecosystem. This is an exciting announcement for the industry. The roaming integration with Senet is made possible by the Helium blockchain and brings together two of the fastest-growing LoRaWans in the USA, delivering a significant opportunity for our hotspot owners to benefit from the rapidly growing IoT services economy.”

Senet’s public carrier-grade LoRaWan is deployed in more than 29 states, covering over 1300 cities, serving a population of over 55 million people, and processing millions of transactions daily.

The Helium network has witnessed rapid growth in hotspot deployments from 7000 in 2020 to over 175,000 in 2021 across 123 countries globally. There are more than 500,000 additional hotspots back-ordered waiting to come online and over 50 new manufacturers waiting to be approved to build and sell Helium-compatible hardware.