The Transforma Insights Blog

In June Transforma Insights published an update on its IoT MVNO market landscape report first published in November 2021 and revised in December 2023. The new report includes profiles of 234 MVNOs (up from 188 previously) around the world, and analysis of some of the key trends that come through from the research. One of the data points we collected during the research was number of employees, based on LinkedIn data, with a view that this would provide some pointers on the health of the IoT MVNO space.

The mobile private network (MPN) market has entered a new phase of maturity. A few years ago, the industry conversation was centred on spectrum, coverage, and whether enterprises would adopt private 5G at scale. Today, the debate has shifted. Enterprises are increasingly focused on operational outcomes, vendors are expanding beyond connectivity into enterprise platforms, and competition is no longer limited to traditional telecom suppliers. Our latest Mobile Private Networks Market Landscape 2026 report finds that the private cellular ecosystem remains highly fragmented. The market is evolving into a broader enterprise technology ecosystem where success depends as much on partnerships, integration capabilities, edge computing, and AI as it does on network infrastructure. This blog post covers eight key trends defining the market in 2026.

The future of IoT connectivity is increasingly hybrid, combining the strengths of both cellular and satellite networks. Cellular connectivity offers low latency, high bandwidth, energy efficiency, and cost-effective operation in areas with strong terrestrial coverage, making it ideal for urban and large-scale deployments. Satellite connectivity provides reliable coverage in remote, offshore, and underserved locations where cellular networks are unavailable or unreliable. Hybrid solutions allow devices to switch between networks, ensuring continuous connectivity and greater resilience.

As the Internet of Things (IoT) continues to expand across industries, organisations are increasingly faced with a key challenge: how to keep devices connected wherever they operate. While cellular networks have traditionally been the default choice for IoT deployments, satellite connectivity is becoming an increasingly important complement, particularly for devices operating beyond the reach of terrestrial infrastructure.

Batteries have become high value, data rich assets that need to be tracked throughout increasingly complex global supply chains. The rapid growth of electric vehicles, battery energy storage systems (BESS), and other battery powered applications has created new challenges around battery traceability, sustainability, and lifecycle management. Unlike most electrical and mechanical components in electronic devices, batteries contain critical raw materials often including lithium, cobalt, and nickel, whose sourcing, environmental impact, use, and end of life treatment are under increasing scrutiny.

Indoor air quality has emerged as one of the most critical, and yet historically overlooked factors which has shaped educational outcomes in the United States. Right from K-12 schools to large university campuses, institutions are increasingly recognising that the air students breathe indoors directly affects their health, cognitive performance, and overall well-being.

Electrification, powered by renewable sources, is accelerating across industries from transport and heating to industrial processes as countries push toward decarbonisation. While the demand for electricity is rising rapidly, the grid that underpins it is under increasing strain. Built for a centralised, predictable energy system, today’s grid must support intelligent connectivity systems, distributed energy resources (DERs), and dynamic consumption patterns.

Many studies have shown that the introduction of CCTV cameras has reduced a range of crimes and violations in monitored areas. In the US and the UK, for example, CCTV installations have resulted in reductions in several crimes, especially theft and robberies in high risk zones. However, this is only a part of the story. These cameras were and often still are monitored by human operators, leading to false alarms due to inaccuracies in detecting abnormal or suspicious activities. With the advent of AI enabled CCTV, autonomous monitoring is now possible.

In this blog post, Matt Hatton explores the main trends he noted from Mobile World Congress and Embedded World trade shows in March 2026. The over-riding trend with regard to IoT was the technology is taking a back seat to commercial and operational issues. And, arguably, not before time.

For generations, natural gas has been an essential energy source for cooking, heating, electricity generation, and industrial use cases, and increasingly also transportation. It is a non-renewable energy source but is one of the cleanest fossil fuels that causes less harm to the environment. Fortunately, the use of renewable energy sources such as solar energy, wind energy, and biomass is expanding each year. As infrastructure for these energy sources improves, dependence on finite fossil fuel resources like natural gas will continue to decline.