The Rencontres IoT for Business events are an opportunity for small- and medium-sized IoT players and Orange to exchange over the course of a day of keynotes, round table discussions, demos and networking. Following up on February’s promising inaugural event, Orange once again welcomed partners at the flagship Paris–Opéra store on 28 November 2018.

The event drew 77 current and prospective partners from 65 companies—software vendors, systems integrator, etc. They were able to meet and exchange with more than 50 Orange experts.

First on the agenda was the keynote by Valérie Cussac, SVP Mobile France & International for Orange Business Services. Mrs. Cussac (pictured above) gave an overview of the accelerating IoT market in France and beyond, reiterating that Orange is committed to supporting ESVs in this very dynamic environment. She included a presentation of various new IoT solutions and programs, including, among others, the launch of LTE-M connectivity in France.

Those present at the event were able to witness examples of how the Orange co-innovation approach can benefit IoT SMEs, with 5 partnering companies present (see below). Device-maker Sensing Labs, for instance, recounted the story of their partnership with Orange to create a “device + connectivity” packaged offer and display their devices in the Orange IoT Marketplace.

Orange experts also presented the “Datavenue Ready” label, which aims to identify partners working with Orange in the IoT field under the Datavenue umbrella program. By advertising themselves as Datavenue Ready, partner companies can leverage on the credibility of the Orange brand and reassure their own customers that they are compatible with systems they might be using.

Orange Developer Marketing Director Thierry Gaillet (pictured below) also gave an update on the ongoing Orange Developer Challenge LTE-M, jointly conducted with the SNCF. Mr. Gaillet presented the shortlisted use cases and companies.

Last but not least, the end of the day was given over to interactive sessions via two workshops, one dedicated to Orange IoT solutions and the other IoT ecosystem actors, including a lively round of “speed dating”.

Based on the feedback from participants, the event was very successful in sharing knowledge, networking and new business perspectives.

• Live Objects device and data management platform
• LoRa connectivity
• LoRa Starter Kit
• Live Button
• IoT Solutions
• LTE-M Starter Kit
• Live Booster
• An improved M2M offer
• IoT Connect Anywhere