The company forecast that 60 percent of all IoT connections will be realized by narrow bandwidth technologies, according to Zhao Jianjun, general-manager of China Telcom's IoT branch.

"Many aren't effectively connected now because they are either too remote, too inaccessible or simply too many of them to make it economically viable to do so," Zhao said.

"NB-IoT is designed for ... devices that generate low data traffic, rely on batteries and typically have a long device life cycle, essentially fueling fresh momentum to the entire IoT industry."

Likewise, China Mobile Communications Corp has started building the NB-IoT networks in 346 cities and vowed to achieve commercial trials in key cities by the end of 2017, said Xiao Qing, a senior director at China Mobile IOT Co Ltd.

Unlike China Telecom, China Mobile is co-developing NB-IoT and eMTC, another key IoT technology that provides wider bandwidth. The company has set a goal of connecting 1.75 billion gadgets by 2020, Xiao said.

China United Network Communications Group Co Ltd has also signed an agreement with the municipal government of Shanghai that includes the deployment of a citywide NB-IoT platform for applications such as intelligent parking and environmental monitoring, in a bid to make the city smarter.

Carriers have all encouraged vendors to move the IoT forward through "Open Lab" initiatives for application developers and device, module and chip manufacturers to test their products.

China's aggressive push to harness the IoT also means the country could play a pivotal role in determining which IoT specifications thrive, said Jiang Wangcheng, president of Huawei's IoT solutions.