Telefonica and Nova Labs have partnered to launch Helium Mobile Hotspots in Mexico. The solution, implemented with select customers in Mexico City and Oaxaca, will extend Telefonica's coverage and enable offloading of mobile data to the Helium Mobile Network and improve overall mobile coverage service for customers. Telefonica and Nova Labs have built a solution based on the OpenWifi standard developed by the Telecom Infra Project (TIP).

This solution enables select Movistar customers in Mexico to access the Helium Mobile Network using their Movistar SIM cards for authentication. Helium Mobile Hotspots are connected to a proprietary management system developed by Telefonica, which controls its customers' automatic access to the Helium Mobile Network for mobile data sessions. Telefonica maintains full control of the customer experience and monitors hotspot status before allowing access and downloading data over the Helium Mobile Network.

This innovative solution combines the core cellular network with Helium Mobile Network coverage and is designed to be deployed globally and leveraged by any operator. The use of Helium Mobile Hotspots reduces telecommunications infrastructure costs significantly, with lower ccapex and opex costs and minimal environmental impact. In addition, it enables a community of individuals and small business owners to deploy Helium Mobile Hotspots and enable Telefonica to accelerate coverage growth while continuing to provide a quality service to its customers.

The Helium Mobile Network allows Telefonica to direct and access new coverage where it is most needed. Helium Mobile Hotspot are compact, discrete, easy to install and can be deployed in small spaces, increasing mobile coverage and allowing mobile data to be offloaded from the core network to the Helium Mobile Network. this people-powered solution increases mobile data coverage and is based on a transparent and immutable economic system managed by the Helium Network's blockchain-based technology.