We have already been writing about LoRa vs. Sigfox and about NB-IoT, but what triggered me to write review about Senet and about their business model is the idea of becoming LoRaWAN network operator.
Sigfox, as a company, is taking care so that the local Sigfox operators can build up the network in a right way. MNOs would just need to make SW upgrade of their existing LTE network to get NB-IoT or LTE-M working since they are already using all the other elements an operator needs. I have been asking myself what about LoRa, it’s an open standard, there’s a bunch of gateway vendors, there’s a huge market of LoRa sensors, but what if you’d like to build a sustainable business case and this means cover great number of use cases for different customers? To do this becoming the LoRaWAN operator seems like a logical choice. This is where I have seen a smart solution from Senet and its unique LoRaWAN network enablement model as a perfect fit. Maybe there are other companies with similar offering, but I’m just going with FIFO method and will not make an market comparison.
Senet operate its own LoRaWAN network which is deployed in more than 225 cities in the US, but also offers Cloud-based LoRaWAN Network Operating System used to speed up LoRaWAN network deployment worldwide. In 2017. Senet made a commercial introduction of MNSi (Managed Network Services for IoT) which is a cloud based OSS and BSS SW platform that enables rapid deployment of LoRaWAN services, thus helping interested companies in becoming LoRaWAN network operators. Also in 2017., Senet introduced LVN (LPWAN Virtual Network) that was named a 2018 IoT Evolution Product of the Year Award winner – just one of many awards they won.
Senet has a common cloud-based services architecture design that provides balance between between scalability, functionality and cost and this is the reason why it’s being used worldwide, by LoRAWAN network operators and solution providers, for management of LoRaWAN.
End devices have embedded sensors and they are using designated ISM RF band for transiting of collected data and receiving control messages.
Gateways give wireless access for the end devices and they are basically relaying the data via IP towards or from the Senet Network Controller. An important notice, Senet is committed to supporting as many commercially available LoRaWAN gateways as possible – so this gives you the level of confidence and freedom.
Network Controller is built using cloud based services, so you don’t have to worry about the resource expansions or availability of web-scale tools. This LoRAWAN Platform Services provides OSS and BSS capabilities and it’s built and operated by Senet.
Security Controllers allow signing, message counters and 128-bit encryption for communication between end devices, gateways and applications. Senet is also offering option of integration with solutions from world-leading security providers.
Application Controllers, Senet’s or Application Provider supplied, are responsible for decryption of the messages from end devices and for providing application-level control of the end devices.
If we look at product and service segment, Senet offers NaaS (Network-as-a-Service) on its own LoRaWAN network in North America. Then, there’s MNSi that I find most interesting for SEE region, since Senet doesn’t plan to deploy the network in our region but according to their coverage map can provide services. MNSi is a cloud-based service that enables operators and other connectivity providers to rapidly deploy LoRaWAN network services on their physical assets (towers, buildings, etc.) and become LoRaWAN network operator. Senet provides Network Server and manages the operator’s network, while operator deploys and manages LoRaWAN RAN, uses Senet’s Network Service and OSS/BSS for onboarding customers and facilitating business engagements. At the end of the day Senet allows LoRaWAN network provider to focus on executing the revenue plan – thus customer acquisition, customer pricing and billing are the things that need to preoccupy LoRaWAN network provider the most.
Idea behind Senet’s LVN is revenue share. So, we have application and services providers that do not need to worry about LoRAWAN connectivity, since there are RAN Providers participating in LVN by deploying and maintaining LoRaWAN gateways on their infrastructure – and they all share a revenue generated by the end devices using their services/RAN.
Senet has a Developer Portal where you can add up to 10 end devices and 5 gateways with 500 uplinks/downlinks per day for all devices combined.
Than there’s The Foundry that’s offering training, development tools and consulting services – basically all you need for LoRa product development.
Ecosystem of Senet’s partners from distributors, gateway and end device vendors, to IoT platforms and network security is showing Senet’s IoT market reach and also helps interested parties to choose the right solution.
Senet also has an 24×7 NOC service for monitoring and support – this is very important service for any network operator.
To conclude, I really like Senet’s concept and the whole ecosystem that they made thus creating a really serious option in the IoT market. The greatest discovery for me is the MNSi, since it represent the right tool for anyone considering a go to market strategy as a LoRaWAN operator.