More than half of the activities in the field of Internet of Things (IoT) technologies are frozen or partially implemented

As Kommersant found out, more than half of the activities in the field of Internet of Things (IoT) technologies included in the core federal project of the Digital Economy national program have been frozen or partially implemented. Among them, for example, is the federal transport telematics network, which the Ministry of Transport began to build in 2020. ANO Digital Economy proposes to develop this area through public-private partnerships, estimating the volume of investments at 40–50 billion rubles. until 2030. They see MTS as a technology partner. Other players recognize the need to develop IoT, but “without limiting competition.” Experts consider projects at the “inter-operator level” necessary.

“Kommersant” got acquainted with the report of ANO “Digital Economy” (ANO TsE, represents the interests of business within the framework of the implementation of the national program “Digital Economy”, among the founders of MTS, MegaFon, VimpelCom, VTB, Sber, etc.), dedicated to the problems of development of the Internet of things in Russia. It states that more than half of the activities included in the federal project “Information Infrastructure” (part of the “Digital Economy”, designed for 2018–2024) and affecting the development of IoT (internet of things, IoT – data transfer between objects equipped with built-in means for interaction), frozen or not fully implemented.

For example, the project to create a separate communication network for transport infrastructure – the Federal Transport Telematics Network (FTTN) based on LPWAN wireless communication technology and other technologies – has not been implemented. The authors of the report note that the Ministry of Transport received the frequencies back in 2018–2020. At the same time, they began to create the system itself, installing certain types of equipment on the road and metro infrastructure. The total amount of concluded government contracts amounted to 1.4 billion rubles.

However, from mid-2021, the costs of completing the creation of the FSTT are excluded from the federal project. The deployment of infrastructure was suspended, and the frequencies were not used for their intended purpose, as follows from the document of the ANO TsE. The Ministry of Transport declined to comment; the Ministry of Digital Development said that they had not received the document.

Initially, the plans included five pilot projects for the development of LPWAN networks, but in 2021 they were excluded. Also identified as problematic is the creation of a unified digital platform for housing and communal services with monitoring and accounting of the condition of property and infrastructure through IoT services. In April 2022, the government postponed the launch of the platform to September of the same year. A Kommersant source familiar with the situation explains that the platform eventually started working, but with a great delay.

To continue the development of the IoT market, ANO CE proposes to use mechanisms of “state and public-private support for priority technological niches.” In particular, we are talking about developing end-to-end projects (that is, the complete production chain of Russian electronic products) in the field of IoT + 5G within the framework of the Internet of Things competence center based on MTS.

ANO Kommersant clarified that they estimate the volume of required public-private financing at 40–50 billion rubles. until 2030. The choice of MTS as a competence center is due to the fact that the operator already has its own such center, explained the ANO. MTS stated that it supports initiatives in terms of creating demand for domestic radio-electronic products in the field of IoT + 5G, and added that the currently created NB-IoT and local LPWAN networks can serve as “sufficient infrastructure for the implementation of new technologies.”

MegaFon supports the development of the area, but emphasizes that target indicators and the implementation of industrial IoT services should be discussed with all market participants, taking into account “possible restrictions on competition.” Tele2 (owned by Rostelecom), Rostelecom and VimpelCom did not answer Kommersant.

Editor of the Telekommunalka Telegram channel Alexey Slukin explains that the launch of IoT for FSTT was carried out through base stations installed on the roads: “When the project was launched, there was no corresponding infrastructure, which, for example, MTS has now. Money was allocated, frequencies were allocated, but in the end the project simply burned out.” He believes that the proposal to support the development of IoT based on MTS is primarily due to the fact that the company now has the largest specialized network.

“One of the problems with implementing IoT at the federal level is the insufficient coverage area of ​​operators,” says Sergei Varnavsky, leading system architect at Nexign. “Currently, not a single Russian operator has 100% coverage area: neither along railways, nor along roads.” Therefore, he believes, projects are needed at the inter-operator level, “which are impossible without regulation by the state.”

Alexey Zhabin