eSIM: Because a Virtual SIM Can Immediately Simplify Your Work

eSIM, Your old physical SIM? It may soon disappear. But that’s not necessarily bad news for your business and the environment. The successor to traditional SIMs is already available on the market and is called eSIM, or embedded SIM.

The eSIM has all the features of a classic SIM in terms of calls and navigation.

The big difference is because it eliminates the physical card to be inserted in the smartphone, tablet, or IoT devices and replaces it with a dedicated memory space inside the device.

In this way, the smartphone is enabled to use the mobile network only via software in a few minutes. A much faster, cheaper, and more environmentally friendly operation than having to use a physical card.

An expanding technology

In 25 years of history, SIMs have become smaller and smaller. They may soon become completely “invisible” and be virtualized.

The idea itself is not new. The first experiments on eSIMs date back to the mid-1990s, but the most recent technological developments – with phones that need to be thinner and more efficient – are rapidly gaining ground for virtual SIMs.

In order to function, the eSIM technology must, of course, be supported by both the device and the TLC operator.

According to research by Truphone and Mobile World Live, currently, 67% of mobile network operators and 48.7% of device manufacturers already support eSIM. Growth forecasts are rosy: 90% of providers will support eSIM by 2025, and in the same year, sales of compatible devices will reach 2 billion pieces against 364 million in 2018 (source: Counterpoint).

Read the list of devices that support eSIMs.

The benefits of eSIM for companies

Why should the adoption of eSIMs simplify the work in companies?

Managing the company’s SIM fleet is not easy. Every day there are new activations to be made, profiles to be modified, options to be added, and telephone numbers to be “frozen” or revoked. Sometimes SIM cards and smartphones are lost or stolen, risking blocking work and creating security problems.

In all these cases and many others, eSIM can do the work of those who manage mobile telephony in the company more fluid and simple.

Activate a number without the physical card

The eSIM eliminates the physical medium and, therefore, many of the activities related to it.

Imagine having to activate the line for a new employee who works remotely. Thanks to the eSIM, the IT manager or the person responsible for managing the SIM can send a QR Code obtained from the operator via email. The employee will simply have to frame the received QR Code with the smartphone, and it will be active with his new number, the data plan, and all the services.

The same goes for the portability and reassignment of a number from one employee to another: two clicks, a QR Code, and you’re productive.

These simplified procedures can lend a big hand in the event of a change of operator, especially in large companies that have to manage hundreds of SIMs. But even smaller companies, which very often do not have an IT manager, can save time and resources thanks to eSIMs.

Easily replace a SIM in case of theft or loss.

eSIM allows the IT manager to manage unexpected events with responsiveness and speed in the best possible way.

An example? Imagine an employee on the road who loses his smartphone or is stolen. Suppose he does not have a backup SIM with him. In that case, currently, the company can only send him a new one (in the second case, together with a spare smartphone) and consider a reduction in productivity resulting from missed calls.

Thanks to eSIM, these problems do not exist or can be solved instantly: the employee can be operational again in a few minutes, just long enough to buy a smartphone in the first shop and frame a QR Code received from his company.

Two or more virtual SIMs in the same smartphone

Two or more virtual SIMs can coexist in the same smartphone.

This can be useful in several cases: first of all, to have a backup data line with you and to be able to switch networks instantly in case of need.

But also to quickly activate a mobile line with a local operator when you are abroad, avoiding both Roaming costs and queues at the point of sale to buy a physical SIM.

It depends on the capabilities of the phone. Some smartphones, for example, the iPhones of the latest generations, enable a true Dual SIM configuration using a physical SIM (nano-SIM) and a virtual one. Having multiple virtual SIMs in the same smartphone means switching from one to the other with a click, but not (necessarily) being able to use them together.

This allows you to receive and make calls with two numbers active simultaneously on the same terminal, which is very useful for separating the private sphere from the professional one.

To protect the environment.

The virtualization of SIMs also brings very concrete advantages to the environment. Without physical support, the materials for the SIM, the support card, the casing, and the consumption for transporting the cards also disappear. So the eSIM becomes an economic and ecological solution.

The role of the operator

The possibility of exploiting the full potential of eSIMs to simplify work also depends on the services offered by the operator.

Suppose the latter – which is not always obvious – provides the company with an advanced SIM management system. In that case, many operations could be managed in self-service mode even with the physical card:

• Blocking
• Tariff profile change
• Activation/deactivation of options
• Setting thresholds and much more

But the eSIM further amplifies these benefits. The reason is obvious.

The virtual card eliminates some time-consuming operations that currently require you to manage the physical SIM necessarily. For example, when you need to activate a new line by inserting the physical card into the phone. Or when you have to recover the SIM of an ex-employee or a casual collaborator to assign it to someone else.

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