Semtech Corporation, a supplier of high performance analogue and mixed-signal semiconductors and advanced algorithms, announced that České Radiokomunikace (CRA), a Czech telecommunications company providing commercial Internet of Things (IoT) services to businesses, has deployed a nationwide LoRaWAN-based network. The network enables access to Semtech’s LoRa devices and wireless radio frequency technology (LoRa Technology) for 75% of the population with plans for continued network expansion.

“We chose Semtech’s LoRa Technology for its open ecosystem and the flexibility it provides for IoT applications,” said Jan Skabrada, IoT Partnership Manager for CRA. “There is a strong push in the country to replace manual utility metering with an Internet-based, Cloud-enabled solution.”

ABI Research estimates that nearly 20% of utility meters worldwide will be connected using low power wide area networks (LPWANs) by 2026. Currently, CRA has 8,000 active metering devices deployed across the country and plans to increase this number to 20,000 by the end of 2019. With the number of smart meters increasing in the country, energy consumption has dropped by as much as 30%.

“CRA provides Czech cities with flexible and reliable smart-utility solutions that maximize efficiency in utility management,” said Vivek Mohan, Director of IoT in Semtech’s Wireless and Sensing Products Group. “Leveraging Semtech’s LoRa Technology, solutions such as these can be put into place to increase efficiency, reduce costs and help conserve energy.”

Semtech’s LoRa Devices 
Semtech’s LoRa devices and wireless radio frequency technology is a widely adopted long-range, low-power solution for IoT that gives telecom companies, IoT application makers and system integrators the feature set necessary to deploy low-cost, interoperable IoT networks, gateways, sensors, module products, and IoT services worldwide. IoT networks based on the LoRaWAN specification have been deployed in over 100 countries and Semtech is a founding member of the LoRa Alliance, the fastest growing IoT Alliance for Low Power Wide Area Network applications. To learn more about how LoRa enables IoT, visit Semtech’s LoRa site and join the LoRa Community to access free training as well as an online industry catalog showcasing the products you need for building your ideal IoT application.