The Fragmentation Challenge That Has Plagued Massive IoT Deployment
For years, the Internet of Things market has struggled with a fundamental contradiction: while the promise of massive-scale sensor networks remains compelling, the ecosystem enabling these deployments has been stubbornly fragmented. Enterprises seeking to deploy thousands of connected devices across utilities, buildings, or industrial facilities have faced a patchwork of incompatible platforms, limited network coverage, and vendor lock-in that stifled innovation. This fragmentation has resulted in delayed projects, inflated costs, and hesitant adoption—even as the business case for IoT connectivity has grown stronger.
The low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) sector, particularly LoRaWAN technology, exemplifies this challenge. Despite technical advantages for battery-powered sensors and long-range connectivity, the market has lacked a dominant player capable of delivering both carrier-grade network operations and comprehensive platform capabilities at global scale. That landscape shifted fundamentally when Netmore Group, the leading network operator for Massive IoT, announced its acquisition of Paris-based Actility, a pioneer in LPWAN solutions with operations spanning Europe, North America, the Middle East, and Australia.
Consolidating Technical Excellence and Market Reach
The transaction brings together complementary strengths that address the ecosystem’s most persistent gaps. Actility, as one of the original authors of the LoRaWAN specification and a founding member of the LoRa Alliance, contributes deep protocol expertise and an established platform powering deployments in over 100 countries. The company’s ThingPark infrastructure supports partnerships with more than 50 LoRaWAN network operators and serves tier-1 telecom providers, global utilities, and manufacturing leaders.
Netmore adds carrier-grade network operations expertise and established vertical market presence in utilities, buildings, and smart cities. The combined entity now manages over 14 million contracted IoT devices—creating the world’s largest LoRaWAN network footprint. This scale enables negotiating leverage with device manufacturers, reduces per-unit connectivity costs, and provides a reference base that derisk deployment decisions for prospective customers.
Unlocking Advanced Capabilities Across Vertical Markets
The merged platform portfolio delivers technical capabilities that directly address deployment bottlenecks in regulated and enterprise environments. For utility companies managing smart meter rollouts, native DLMS (Device Language Message Specification) over LoRaWAN enables highly efficient metering without protocol conversion overhead. Water utilities benefit from LoRaWAN Relay functionality that extends network reach into underground meter installations—historically one of the most challenging connectivity scenarios.
Building management represents another strategic opportunity. Actility’s autonomous all-in-one gateways with embedded network servers and direct BACnet/Modbus connectivity allow facility managers to integrate LoRaWAN sensors into existing Building Management Systems without extensive middleware infrastructure. This simplifies the path from building-level data collection to cloud-based analytics platforms.
For security-sensitive deployments, on-premise high-availability LPWAN infrastructure enables organizations in regulated industries to maintain data sovereignty while leveraging standardized LoRaWAN device ecosystems. The addition of FUOTA (Firmware Updates Over The Air) broadcast capabilities addresses emerging compliance requirements, including the EU Cybersecurity Resilience Act, by enabling large-scale security patching of deployed sensor fleets.
Strategic Validation from Tier-1 Operators
Orange Business, operating one of Europe’s largest public LoRaWAN networks on Actility’s ThingPark platform, endorsed the acquisition as strengthening the European IoT ecosystem. This validation from a major telecom operator signals market confidence that consolidation will enhance rather than constrain competitive dynamics. The ThingPark Exchange roaming hub, which enables seamless data exchange between private and public networks, positions the combined entity as infrastructure rather than competitor to existing operators.
The acquisition transforms years of market fragmentation into integrated capability, delivering the scale, technical breadth, and operational reliability that enterprise IoT deployments demand. For organizations evaluating massive sensor deployments, this consolidation reduces vendor risk, simplifies procurement, and accelerates time-to-value.
About Netmore Group
Netmore Group is the leading global network operator for Massive IoT, powering the world’s most advanced and sustainability-focused solutions for utilities, buildings, cities, and other markets that benefit from sensor-connected environments. With a decade of innovation and leadership in IoT platform development and network operations, Netmore continues to set the standard for IoT excellence. Netmore operates in 18 countries and is backed by Nordic infrastructure investor Polar Structure.
About Actility
Actility, one of the co-inventors of LoRaWAN® technology and a founding member of the LoRa Alliance, is the leader in industrial-grade low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) connectivity and IoT tracking solutions. Actility’s ThingPark™ platform, which supports multi-radio connectivity (LoRaWAN®, NB-IoT, LTE-M), powers the majority of public networks and numerous private and enterprise networks worldwide. Through its subsidiary Abeeway, Actility offers patented ultra-low power, multi-radio trackers and comprehensive indoor and outdoor geolocation services. Additionally, the ThingPark Market boast the largest catalog of LoRaWAN® devices, gateways, and solutions available.
