Insight
Teragence, with its Signal Checker product, delivers geo-located, quantitative mobile network coverage data to anyone who depends on mobile connectivity for the success of their business
So what does that mean? Christian Rouffaert, Teragence’s founder and CEO, breaks down Teragence’s target market in five segments:
MVNO’s: MVNO’s (Mobile Virtual Network Operators) depend on licensed operators to deliver their underlying mobile network services. And till date, they had to take their supplier’s word on the coverage quality as given, – there really was no way to hold them to account. Teragence has changed that: MVNO’s can now use our geo-located mobile network coverage data to assess the quality of the network they are buying.
Real-estate and property: We are all familiar with the energy rating of a building and the impact on its valuations Similarly, property is moving towards a digital rating – residential properties already have a fixed broadband rating and will soon require a mobile coverage rating as well. In the commercial property space, the value of connectivity is also well understood – you can’t attract a premium tenant if the employees cannot make calls when in the building. Teragence delivers a simple, bite-size way of assessing the available mobile connectivity inside any existing or new building .
IoT service providers: The economic promise of IoT is driven by a network of remote sensors detecting local conditions, transmitting this information and enabling suitable interventions. But, if there is no connectivity, this promise cannot be delivered. And if not carefully managed, IoT’s economic benefits risks being reversed as repeated site visits rack up the costs side of things. With Teragence, IoT service providers can assess the available mobile connectivity from the comfort of their desk and optimise their deployments accordingly. For example, UDlive, a water metering company estimates that thanks to Teragence Signal Checker, their deployment costs reduced by 15%.
Local authorities and other government entities: Connectivity is the lifeblood of the of the physical and the digital economy and it is the foundation for digital inclusion. But government organisations often struggle to cost effectively obtain mobile coverage data at the required granularity. We provide that data instantaneously and cost-effectively, giving government organisations the data needed to engage knowledgeably with the mobile operators.
Digital Infrastructure: Our digital economy is underpinned by a large physical infrastructure fabric: data centres, towers, fibre, etc…knowing where they are or identifying suitable locations for new deployment, is vital for their success. For example , the decision to erect a new cell tower is not only driven by the nature of the existing mobile coverage, but also the availability of nearby fibre networks.
When asked about Teragence’s USP, Christian talks about the quality, granularity and transparency of Teragence’s mobile signal data, but also its pay-per-use commercial structure. “It enables our customers to buy the required data in the quantities and financial outlays that fit their own commercial circumstances. We serve customers that spend £ 100 with us as well as £ 10,000” says Christian.
Before starting Teragence, Christian worked in various roles in the telecoms sector , typically with a data-focused slant. After a fruitful corporate career he decided to start his own business based on two converging ideas:
The belief that a lot of businesses and organisations, beyond the mobile operators, want to have access to an objective, quantitative data source on available connectivity.
The power of data and geo-spatial analytics: by combining crowdsourced data and advanced geo-spatial analytics and machine learning, this data can be made accessible.
Christian is a great story teller- one of his great inspirations is the movie “Moneyball”. “It is the story of how a new, data-driven approach to baseball, enabled an underdog team to punch far above its weight and have one of the most successful seasons ever. I love these data-driven David vs Goliath stories” he says..
Today, Teragence is gaining steady traction in the market: the company is partnering with several IoT MVNO’s such as Zariot and 1nce and it recently signed a partnership with WiredScore to provide algorithmic assessments of indoor mobile coverage quality.
When asked about the future, Christian talks about geographic expansion beyond the core footprint of Europe and North America and functional expansion to go beyond mobile connectivity and create an authoritative source for all forms of connectivity: wireless as well as fixed. Teragence is finalising a agreement with US-based FiberLocator, a CCMI Company. Their specialty is in bringing geo-located fixed connectivity insights to the market
“Teragence has been going from strength to strength with its mobile connectivity insights” says Christian. “We believe that providing actionable, bite-size insights into the state of all types of connectivity-whether fixed or mobile, will become more and more important. And we are very excited to collaborate with FiberLocator to bring this joined proposition to market.”
Company CV
HQ : London, United Kingdom
Number of employees : 6
Last fund type : £ 300 K angel round
URL : www. Teragence.com
Founders / Linkedin Address : https://www.linkedin.com/in/christian-rouffaert-347993/
Videos:
Signal Checker demo
Indoor Signal Checker demo
Customer case study interview
Catch Teragence at Connected North this year, 22-23 April in Manchester. Get your tickets here!