Fierce Wireless story on M2M Datasmart

Sprint inks M2M partnership with DataSmart

Originally posted on : www.fiercewireless.com

Sprint Nextel said it signed a multi-year deal with wireless data service provider M2M DataSmart to help get more machine-to-machine devices running on its network. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Under the agreement, M2M DataSmart will help add M2M devices onto Sprint's network by providing test accounts and assisting with certification and engineering applications. Further, the two companies will provide developer kits and developer test accounts for end-to-end provisioning and activation.

Craig Creason, Sprint's manager of business development for wholesale wireless data solutions, told FierceWireless that the deal had been gestating for a for some time and that DataSmart had brought the concept of a partnership to Sprint. He said the partnership would help get more M2M devices onto Sprint's network by giving device and solutions providers a set of tools that they may not have. 

"What this new partnership does is really help out smaller operators that perhaps don't have all of the resources--from personnel as well as financials--to take on all of the elements of bringing a solution to market," he said.

Sprint has made no secret of its desire to push further into the M2M and embedded wireless space. It has certified over 300 non-Sprint M2M devices through its Open Device Initiative. Indeed, the carrier provides wireless service for Amazon's Kindle ereader and earlier this year it inked a deal with Ford Motor Co. to put in-dashboard computers that connect to Sprint's network in Ford vehicles. Creason said the deal would help accelerate that trend.

"We're creating scale to the business," he said. "A partnership like this with M2M DataSmart will help us generate a lot more activity from devices we're not aware of."