Since its inception over 20 years ago, the mobile network has seen a steady increase in capabilities. The first generation, introduced in the 1980’s, could only carry voice, the second generation brought new digital services such as text and image sharing, while 3G, the third generation, saw video calling and mobile data introduced. Most recently 4G was developed to support mobile internet and higher speeds for video streaming and gaming.
5G is the latest evolution in mobile networks and is set to be much faster. Unlike 4G, 5G will open up entirely new use cases for mobile data in business enabling a quicker, more efficient way of working, travelling and consuming data. The speed and consistency of 5G is expected to revolutionise industries much like the advent of the automobile and telephone did.
But how, when and why?
Societal benefits
Speed, speed and more speed. 5G will be much faster than 4G. It will also have much lower latency, meaning there will be little delay or lag when using mobile and internet-connected devices. From a business perspective, this is vital for next-generation technology enhancements like connected cars, smart medical devices and smart cities.
If 5G delivers everything it promises to, many expect the introduction of 5G to underpin the fourth industrial revolution – Industry 4.0, where everything is connected, processed and digitised.
Technical benefits
5G will have a greater capacity, in that networks will be able to cope with high-volume applications immediately, from virtual reality to the IoT (Internet of Things) and HD video streaming. For businesses that rely on fast and reliable network connectivity between multiple sites and data centres, 5G will open doors to capabilities they never knew existed. 5G will provide:
- Greater Capacity – 5G will have greater capacity, meaning networks will be able to cope better with many high-demand applications all at once.
- Reliability– 5G is expected to be much more reliable, meaning no dropped calls or always-available connectivity, which will allow more ‘critical’ use cases such as those related to digital health.
- Flexibility – 5G networks promise to be more flexible – network slicing allows a physical network to be divided into multiple virtual networks so users can engage the right ‘slice’ depending on their immediate requirements.
Use cases
While 5G connectivity is expected to unlock the ability to create, deliver and use services that are yet to be invented, it is expected to deliver tangible benefits to existing industries in the medium term.
Some anticipated outcomes of 5G technology include:
- Productivity: A key benefit of 5G could be helping businesses work more quickly and more efficiently – in turn, saving costs and increasing revenue assisting many businesses as they move to more flexible working models. Through having access to this new technology businesses will have access to a very fast and reliable internet connection.
- Rural innovation: Many countries, including the UK, are looking to 5G to better connect rural communities, allowing more people to start businesses from home and opening up new opportunities.
- Tailored networks: With network slicing it will be possible for a business to practically own their own private 5G network, precisely set up according to its specific business needs. 5G will certainly have much greater capacity across a much wider range of radio spectrum, but it will also use that spectral resource more intelligently, assigning only the resources necessary for each application.
- Lower costs: The shift from a hardware to a software-based network environment will bring about lower overheads for mobile operators. Those savings will in turn be able to be passed on to business customers.
How do we make 5G a reality?
To make 5G a reality, deep, robust aggregation of fronthaul and backhaul is required. Fibre networks will effectively act as the bedrock for 5G services.
Initial projections of 5G deployments by 2020 may be somewhat overhyped. Instead, it could be 2022 or beyond before we have widespread 5G coverage in the UK.
This is because of the need not to rush deployment, ensuring the appropriate foundations are in place to make 5G the mobile experience many expect.
A key component for the launch of 5G services is high-capacity fibre connectivity, which must provide fast and reliable backhaul to the core networks and masts. This will in turn need to increase ten-fold as the UK prepares for 5G. It will be substantially different than current 4G technology – and will operate on significantly higher frequencies with much larger channel bandwidths.
Sarah Mills, Network Operator Sector Director, SSE Enterprise Telecoms
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