SINGAPORE, Aug. 7, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Bridge Alliance announces a groundbreaking new partnership with Deutsche Telekom AG (DT) to collaborate on the Internet of Things business opportunities. Through the collaboration, DT, represented by Deutsche Telekom IoT joins Bridge Alliance as a member operator, contributing to Bridge Alliance's footprint count of now 35 member operators with a reach of over 100 markets and a billion customers in Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa and now Europe.

DT is a world leading telco with a global presence in over 50 countries. DT will open the doors to new IoT business opportunities with European companies for Bridge Alliance's member operators. Meanwhile, Bridge Alliance can help DT further differentiate its IoT services and solutions for its customers, providing the latter with unprecedented access to Asia. Together, the joint cooperation between Bridge Alliance and DT and their collective global coverage have forged a "Gateway between Europe and APAC" for enterprises seeking to expand their IoT business in multiple markets.

Dr Ong Geok Chwee, CEO of Bridge Alliance, says, "We are incredibly excited to welcome Deutsche Telekom to the Bridge Alliance family. We are celebrating our 20^th anniversary this year and DT's membership and the expansion of Bridge Alliance's reach to include Europe makes 2024 a truly milestone year for us. We look forward to a productive and robust collaboration with DT to capture more IoT growth opportunities together!"

"We are very pleased to now be a strong partner for the Bridge Alliance. We are pooling the know-how and technical expertise of all members. Together, we always offer our customers the best connectivity solution for their global challenge," emphasises Dennis Nikles, Managing Director of Deutsche Telekom IoT. "For companies from the Asian region, it is now even easier to do IoT business in Europe. This is particularly interesting for the growing market of Asian electric vehicles in Europe. But European customers also benefit. A strong global offering - all under one contract, one management and one globally standardised service."

In recent years, the Asian automotive Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) sector, especially the electric vehicle market has witnessed exponential growth in markets such as China, Japan and Korea. China was the frontrunner for electric cars, accounting for around 60% of global electric car sales^[1] in 2022, while Europe was the second largest market with one in every five cars sold an electric car. The Bridge Alliance-DT partnership provides a launch pad for both electric vehicle OEMs seeking connectivity globally beyond Asian shores and European automakers looking to expand their connected car business in Asia Pacific.

Asia is known to be a challenging region for new business expansion, given that Asian markets have very different levels of market maturity, regulations and technological capabilities across its markets. Bridge Alliance offers an award-winning multi-domestic IoT solution which helps companies deploy connected products such as connected cars in multiple countries in the region. Its unique lead-operator model enables customers to ink a contract with just one lead member operator, supported by fellow Bridge Alliance premier member operators across the region. This approach removes the complexity of multi-market deployment while allowing the customer to enjoy excellent network quality and local market expertise in its target markets.

About Bridge Alliance

Bridge Alliance, the leading mobile alliance for premier operators and their customers in Asia Pacific, Europe, Middle East and Africa, celebrates its 20^th anniversary in 2024. Founded by seven leading operators in 2004 with a focus on regional roaming, our alliance today covers 35 members who serve over 1 billion customers collectively across these regions. Our goal is to build group capabilities and create value for our members by enabling compelling roaming services and experience, offering multi-market enterprise and IoT solutions, and delivering savings and benefits through leveraging group economies.

Bridge Alliance's members and partners include: Airtel (India, Sri Lanka and the Airtel subsidiaries in Africa: Chad, Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Kenya, Malawi, Madagascar, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Seychelles, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia), AIS (Thailand), China Telecom (Mainland China), China Unicom (Mainland China), CSL Mobile (Hong Kong), CTM (Macau), Deutsche Telekom (Europe), Globe Telecom (Philippines), Maxis (Malaysia), Metfone (Cambodia), MobiFone (Vietnam), Optus (Australia), Singtel (Singapore), SK Telecom (South Korea), stc (Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait), SoftBank Corp. (Japan), Taiwan Mobile (Taiwan), and Telkomsel (Indonesia).

For more information, visit www.bridgealliance.com.