Vi Business forays into integrated IoT space, plans expansion in cloud services

Debt-ridden telecom firm Vodafone Idea on Thursday announced foray into integrated Internet of Things (IoT) space for enterprises segment as it looks to transform itself from a traditional connectivity service provider to a technology company. Abhijit Kishore, chief enterprise business officer, Vi Business, said on Thursday that the company will also look at offering cloud services.

There are “three specific fields that we are wanting to get into. One obviously IoT and integrated space. Second one is on collaboration which includes a host of SaaS (software as a service) and third one will be cloud services. From being a traditional connectivity player, we will be connectivity plus collaboration plus IoT and integrated IoT and a cloud platform”, Kishore said during a virtual conference.

The company announced the launch of IoT solutions that can track machines performance and control them remotely. Vi Business shared that the company has already deployed a smart metering solution for one of the power distribution firms that remotely collect meter reading and also inform customers to buy cheaper power as per the consumption and load pattern. Kishore said that the company expects huge growth from integrated IoT solutions in coming days.

The announcement from Vodafone Idea comes a day after Bharti Airtel announced the launch of Airtel IoT – an end-to-end platform with the capability to connect and manage billions of devices and applications. Kishore said that the IoT solutions offered by Vi Business is different from that of competition.

He claimed that Vi Business is a significant player in the automotive space and has around 85-90 per cent of business in the connected car segment. “All the major automotive industry manufacturer – Tata Motors, Kia, Hyundai, Daimler etc, we are working with them,” Kishore said.