Wuxi Hanhe Aviation Technology Co's fertilizer-spraying drone is listed as a gold award-winning product at the WIOT in Wuxi on Sept 10. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

"The lower cost and precise positioning of NB-IoT will enable our bikes to be parked in remote areas and underground parking lots," explained Cao.

China Telecom also impressed the judges with its "black box" for drones, which transmits real-time location and operational data from drones to a monitoring platform. The system also allows regulatory authorities to send messages directly to drone users.

According to Zhao Jianjun, manager of China Telecom's IoT division, the system will be particularly useful due to the rapid growth of China's drone market.

Annual sales of unmanned aerial vehicles in China are set to hit 300,000 by 2020, according to China Telecom's predictions, which could create severe air safety risks in China unless order is brought to the drone market.