• by Chase Martin , April 3, 2017

Worldwide on-demand connectivity may soon be coming to IoT devices of all types, thanks to a newly adopted SIM capability.

Softbank just launched a cloud-based platform for remotely tapping into the connectivity capabilities of IoT devices.

This in turn would allow devices to be remotely updated or configured to operate on a certain network without needing to physically change anything on the device.

“As the number of connected devices grows each day and the demand for flexibility and seamless user experience soars, we believe on-demand connectivity is a game-changer for the telecommunications industry,” Hironobu Tamba, head of service platform strategy and development at Softbank, said in a statement.

Additionally, a user’s network subscription status can be verified prior to enabling the device to connect to a network, according to Softbank.

The capability behind the platform was developed by digital security powerhouse Gemalto and essentially replaces the need to have a dedicated SIM card in a device, such as the cards needed to enable cellular connectivity in smartphones.

Instead, the so-called eSIM (Embedded Subscriber Identity Module), is embedded directly into the devices themselves and then can be connected to Softbank’s eSIM platform for configuration.

Gemalto has also been teaming with other global companies to bring eSIM-equipped devices to market.

For example, Samsung and Italian telecommunications provider TIM teamed up with Gemalto last year to launch a smartwatch that can connect to a network without needing a smartphone, as the IoT Daily reported at the time (Samsung Begins Marketing Smartwatch That Doesn't Need A Smartphone).

Devices that could have eSIM capabilities include wearables, connected vehicles, traffic monitoring systems and smart parking meters, according to Gemalto.

Other companies involved in Gemalto’s on-demand provisioning program include T-Mobile Austria, Swisscom and Transatel, among others.