The new trials of carrier Wi-Fi focus heavily on the SIM card to authenticate users on WLans as well as cellular networks (see separate item). This is just one example of how the SIM is being adopted to secure and control access for a huge range of connected gadgets, not just handsets and tablets. The operators, for obvious reasons, favour SIM as the way to secure NFC mobile payments. And increasingly, the wireless gadgets will be tiny modules, embedded in all kinds of everyday items – and far too small to accommodate current SIM designs. This has sparked a power struggle over the future format of miniature SIM cards, with large cellcos leading the charge to define the embedded SIM . At the same time, the trend will see them resigning some of the control the SIM brings them, as they will be unable to activate and manage each individual card directly, once connected devices are numbered in many millions and even billions.
For the machine-to-machine and consumer appliance segments, SIM cards will have to be embedded, non-removable and automatically activated. Nothing else is practical, but it does move the all-important SIM card from the complete control of the operator, and into that of the device maker. If the trend spreads to conventional mobile products, particularly handsets ‘ as Apple has controversially explored for iPhone ‘ there could be another nail in the coffin of operators’ traditional models. They could cede activation rights to the vendor, losing another element of their direct relationship with the mobile user, as well as the chance to build value added services, such as NFC, straight onto the SIM. However, it does not have to be that way ‘ in situations where carriers are still activating new devices, it will be harder for users to switch their handsets easily to another network via a card swap.
In addition, removing the user accessible SIM card leaves more room for other components and reduces complexity. These factors were at the heart of the recent row in the ETSI standards body, between two proposed formats for the next generation SIM card, the nanoSIM, which will be far smaller than current microSIMs. It does not have to be embedded, but its size clearly points to that future.
Apple and Nokia submitted rival designs, and a fierce battle ensued, which the iPhone maker won. While Nokia’s support mainly came from other handset makers, nervous of letting Apple control yet another aspect of the mobile experience (even though it promised not to charge royalties for its design), Apple scored by getting the carriers onside.
This relatively rare alignment of interests, between cellcos and the vendor which most effectively divorces the mobile user from the carrier brand, revealed that the operators’ influence remains huge in all things SIM-related. It also shows that Apple has learned lessons from its last European run-in over SIM futures, when it was forced to pull back on plans to introduce a non-removable, directly activated card in the iPhone, because of furious reactions from Europe’s big cellcos ‘ some even threatening to remove the Apple product from their shelves.
Now Apple knows that, in this most sensitive of areas, it needs to get the carriers behind it, which will put it in pole position to define the next wave of SIM standards and practices, for embedded and M2M approaches. In alliance with operators, it has a greater chance of influencing the next wave of embedded cards.
Beyond the nanoSIM debate, ETSI is on the way to setting the standards for eUICC (the Embedded Universal Integrated Circuit Card) or embedded SIM. Geared to M2M, this will also entail new processes for authentication and for switching networks ‘ which may feed back into the traditional mobile devices too. Since the UICC will not be replaceable, the industry will need new ways to provision access credentials and to manage subscription changes from one operator to another. ETSI is currently debating these issues of remote programming and provisioning of the new devices and it certainly isn’t confining its discussions to M2M.
Its draft requirements document has a large section on use in consumer products like phones, which carries many echoes of attempts by Google and Apple to sideline the carrier when a consumer buys a device and selects their network. The document talks about one use case where ‘a consumer purchases a new device with an eUICC and then selects an MNO for communication services. The MNO might be selected at the same or another retailer, at an MNO shop or online and will be activated within a short period. First use of the new device will be with the first subscription already set-up, or if no subscription is set-up, the customer will select an MNO and, if required, after appropriate authorization a subscription will be set-up. Subscription set-up happens on either the mobile network using a provisioning profile or any other connectivity mechanism provided, subject to required end-to-end security being provided eg Lan, WLan, Bluetooth or USB.’ As TheVerge points out: ‘USB provisioning would allow the vendor to complete the entire provisioning process out of the box without shipping different SKUs to different carriers loaded with different SIM cards.’
As well as ETSI, the GSM Association is also looking at standards for remote management of embedded SIM subscriptions. Telefonica, Telstra and China Unicom recently showed off their own solution, which is pre-standard but based on the GSMA work, and indicates the urgency with which many cellcos see the bid to define these key issues. The three carriers allow secure profiles to be downloaded to the embedded SIMs and will allow swapping of MNOs to support scenarios like specific roaming deals, network changes and upgrades, service delete, and change of device ownership. They are using a portal and a subscription management platform hosted by security firm G&D, and the activity is heavily focused on M2M.
Telefonica said the solution allows remote management of the subscription data of M2M embedded SIMs, including remote activation on demand, subscription transfer between different M2M devices, and even subscription replacement (for example, subscription swapping between China Unicom and Telef’nica Spain, Telef’nica UK, Telef’nica Germany, and Telstra over the air.)
While cellco adoption of SIM cards that can be embedded in any mobile devices and activated remotely may look like turkeys voting for Christmas, it is a necessary step in a world where there will be a huge upsurge of embedded devices, many of which carriers will not want to control. For instance, utilities will be the logical parties to activate the SIM cards in smart meters. At least they will have the chance to influence the rules, since the GSMA seeks to create these to please its carrier members, and has set up a taskforce to examine the issue.
One way for operators to bite back against a fully open smartphone will be to make their own SIM cards more attractive than the embedded variety. Over the past few years, large amounts of added functionality have been added to the SIM. Chip vendors Infineon and Micron Technology have been working on taking the capacity of a SIM card beyond 128Mb, to support media-rich applications. The card would then integrate the security and access control functions of a regular SIM with 128Mb or more of NAND storage, able to store audio or video. This would be a way for carriers to offer media-rich value added services that also require access control, such as mobile banking, ticketing and content delivery ‘ further enhanced by the addition of NFC for payments.
NFC and even Wi-Fi have been embedded onto SIM cards ‘ in 2010, card specialist Sagem Orga achieved the latter, to provide an embedded mobile hotspot in a phone, more cheaply than with current technology, and strictly under the carrier’s control.