Instead of changing out SIM cards or installing different cards for different deployments, an eUICC gives consumers and IoT manufacturers the ability to provision the SIM with a new operator profile OTA.
For consumers, the process is relatively simple to use and low cost. But the initial M2M version was designed for the automotive industry and makes downloading or adding a new profile more complex because you need to either own a subscription management platform (SM-SR) or use an operators’ one. If you use the SM-SR of your operator everytime you want to integrate a new operator there is significant additional setup time and costs involved.
Due to these drawbacks the GSMA is together with the subscription manager platform vendors defining a new standard that simplifies the profile update also for M2M use cases. This new standard will be similar to the consumer use case.
While eUICCs are often called eSIMs (Embedded Subscriber Identity Module), eSIMs can also refer to a specific SIM form factor—the MFF2, which is the only embeddable form of the module.

Benefits of an Embedded Universal Integrated Circuit Card
Installing an eUICC on your device gives your application several major advantages. They all come from the eUICC’s ability to store multiple Mobile Network Operator (MNO) profiles and switch between them remotely.
Here’s how that works and what it means for your business.
Multiple MNO profiles on a single SIM
The eUICC is not a hardware concept; it is a feature concept for the way SIM profiles are managed. A traditional UICC contains a single MNO profile, which usually has 64KB or 128KB of memory. An eUICC can host multiple profiles and requires a minimum memory of 512KB.

The profile includes the information the MNO needs to enable connectivity. Traditionally, these profiles are locked to the SIM—meaning if you change operators, you need to replace the SIM.
Not only can eUICC’s host multiple provider profiles, but they also have space for additional applications, such as security features.
A single SIM works for every deployment
For M2M deployments where devices are distributed globally and in remote locations, coordinating the correct installation of the SIM at the correct time can pose logistical nightmares. Installing a SIM with an eUICC during the manufacturing stage also saves costs on production and distribution as well as inventory as you only require a single SKU.