5G Race is Underway

On March 12, U.S. President Donald Trump issued an executive order to block Broadcom from acquiring Qualcomm. This has to do with the fact that a number of countries are trying to get the upper hand in the 5G race these days.

In South Korea, KT is planning to launch commercial 5G services in March next year and KT, LG U+ and SK Telecom are planning to initiate 5G network construction in September this year after the 5G frequency auction scheduled for June.

The Chinese government, in the meantime, is going to invest 500 billion yuan in the industry from 2013 to 2020 and three major Chinese mobile carriers are going to add US$180 billion to the investment. This is to lead every sector of the 5G industry, such as IoT products, terminals and semiconductors as well as telecom infrastructure.

The race is because 5G technology is the very foundation of next-generation information technology. 5G technology is essential for services like remote surgical operations, smart home, smart city and autonomous driving based on the IoT. The number of connected devices per square kilometer is estimated to increase to one million, which means industrial ecosystems will be taken to another level.

This is why not only telecom operators but also manufacturers are jumping into the race. For instance, Hyundai Motor Company and KT recently demonstrated an innovative in-vehicle infotainment system in the former’s Level 4 autonomous vehicle Nexo. According to Accenture, connected car technology is expected to be applied to every vehicle in 2025 and later.