Live Broadcast over 5G
SK Telecom announced on Aug. 28 that it has succeeded in 5G data transmission and live broadcasting from a racing car running at up to 213 kilometers per hour.
The company used the 28 GHz ultra-high frequency band in the demonstration, which was jointly carried out with Samsung Electronics.
The two companies set up multiple commercial base stations at the Yeongam International Auto Racing Center in South Jeolla Province and placed four Galaxy S10 5G handsets supporting the 28GHz frequency band around the driver’s seat in the racing car. SK Telecom T Live Caster was used as a live broadcast solution.
The four Galaxy S10 5G handsets sent videos from the racing car running at 210 km/h via the smartphone-28 GHz base station relay broadcast system. The racing staff members were able to feel as if they were aboard the racing vehicle together with the driver through videos shot from various angles. This was the first time in the world that a 5G service test has been carried out successfully in a driving environment of more than 200 km/h using commercial 5G 28GHz base stations and terminals based on 3GPP standards.
In particular, the two companies focused on verifying handover technology that is required to seamlessly pass data from one base station to another under extreme conditions. At the top speed of 213 km/h, handovers were smoothly made and live broadcasting was stable during driving. The data transfer rate reached about 1 Gbps even when the car ran at a high speed.
The two companies expect this technology verification to lead to an evolution in 5G technology towards such advanced services as motorsport live broadcasts and connected car solutions.