The network and the hardware devices which support the 5G network are planned to release around 2019. T-Mobile has already rolled out their 5G network in six locations in the USA. Combine this with the new Samsung Galaxy S10 5G, and you are already able to access the 5G network (Lifewire, 2019). But what exactly are the advantages compared to the 4G network, and how do managers of ‘telcos’ (telecommunication companies) see these advantages play out in the market?
The 5G network promises, amongst other thing, mainly faster connection with ultra-low latencies and the ability to connect even more devices to the internet, because of the enhanced mobile broadband. Especially the latter will give a great boost to Internet of Things (IoT), as more IoT devices are able to connect to the internet without any latency. The latency aspect of 5G will have major implications in sectors and devices where milliseconds can make a huge difference (e.g. enablement of connected cars on the 5G network). The hype around 5G networks, and most potential use cases for the 5G networks have been written in these sectors.
But according to a survey conducted on 46 different telco Chief Technology Officers (McKinsey, 2019), they see this latest wireless advance mainly as an opportunity to (re)gain network leadership (McKinsey, 2019). With 4G, we have seen KPN almost go bankrupt, but this created a huge entry barrier and is therefore a strategic investment to rule out competition. The ‘enhanced IoT connections’ even come after ‘increasing customer satisfaction’ and the ability of ‘capacity expansion’ as reasons for these CTO to engage in 5G developments. According to them, the current IoT capabilities are sufficient for most use cases (for now). The momentum to fully engage the company towards the 5G network lies with the CTO, so this probably won’t happen just yet. 61% of the CTOs think that peak rollout will happen between the period of 2020 and 2022. This let us think to ourselves, are the potential use cases for 5G going te be reality within now and 2 years?
References:
https://www.lifewire.com/5g-availability-us-4155914
https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/telecommunications/our-insights/cutting-through-the-5g-hype-survey-shows-telcos-nuanced-views
https://internetofthingsnederland.nl/gaat-5g-netwerk-nu-echt-brengen/
There is no question that the 5G technology could change our lives in numerous ways. I just wonder if the technology isn’t coming too soon. There are still numerous things uncertain about the technology, e.g. health risks because of radiofrequency waves or the possible privacy intrusion by letting companies like Huawei run the network. What is your thought on this?