The Chinese operator will use Ericsson’s Device Connectivity Platform to streamline its process for provisioning and deploying IoT services for global enterprise customers.
The partnership, which was announced at the China Mobile Global Partner Conference in Guangzhou, China, will also see the two firms work together to explore new IoT markets and opportunities.
IoT is a fast-growing market, and China Mobile expects to have more than 200 million connected devices on its network by the end of 2017.
Yuejia Sha, executive vice president, China Mobile, says: “We stick to the strategy of open cooperation with our partners for win-win results. China Mobile strengthens the collaboration with global leading enterprises of advanced platform, application and intelligent hardware to drive the rapid development of our industry, and provides superior applications and services to our customers."
Ericsson launched its Device Connection Platform in 2008 and has already signed up more than 24 operators across the globe, with more than 1,700 industry customers using it.
The Swedish vendor has forecasted more than 16 billion IoT devices will be in operation by 2021, and has signed deals with the likes of Telia Carrier.
Chris Houghton, head of region North East Asia, Ericsson, said: "We are very proud to be selected by China Mobile as a strategic partner for Internet of Things. These types of applications will also help promote the development and deployment of 5G technology.
“We look forward to supporting China Mobile and developing this business while accelerating large-scale deployments of Internet of Things across the world."
