The LoRa Alliance, which is behind the open LoRaWAN low-power wide-area network protocol designed with the Internet of Things (IoT) in mind, has announced “explosive growth” which has seen it pass more than 100 network operators in around 100 countries.

Designed for minimum power draw and maximum range, LoRaWAN has found a home in the Internet of Things – particularly for community-driven projects like The Things Network, which recently partnered with Digital Catapult UK to deploy the UK’s largest LoRaWAN network and with which AB Open has partnered to launch a Calderdale LoRaWAN network. Now, the success of the open standard is clear: it has been adopted by more than 100 network operators across the globe.

“Reaching this operator milestone is a major achievement for the LoRa Alliance,” says Donna Moore, chief executive and chair of the LoRa Alliance. “Only LoRaWAN has strong, established networks with broad coverage areas, while also offering the private network option. For companies looking to launch IoT products and solutions today, the LoRaWAN standard is the only viable solution. Features like firmware updates over the air and the fact that LoRaWAN is an open specification with a robust certification program ensure network and device interoperability. These benefits give confidence to the market that companies are future-proofed and can deploy solutions today with assurance they will work in the future.”

“This is a huge milestone as it proves LoRaWAN Internet of Things, just as the real internet, doesn’t care about country borders,” adds Wienke Giezeman, chief executive and co-founder of The Things Network. “With The Things Network and The Things Industries we are happy to be present in more than 89 countries and can provide LoRaWAN connectivity in all corners of the world.”

According to figures released by the LoRa Alliance, LoRaWAN networks are showing highest growth in the Asia-Pacific and European regions at a respective 30 and 50 percent last year.