Research firm Analysys Mason has revealed challenges in deploying 5G mobile networks in UK.
Incidentally, KT, a telecom operator in Korea, identified several growth opportunities after making investment in 5G in the Asian country.
Vodafone, O2, Three, BT-owned EE, among others are gearing up for launching 5G in UK along with other global telecom markets.
Legal barriers, deployment issues and challenges with stakeholder engagement have the potential to delay the rollout of 5G, the report said.
Uncertainty regarding the business case for denser 5G networks could ultimately limit the deployment of 5G infrastructure in UK, said the a report published by the Broadband Stakeholders Group (BSG).
Currently they act as a significant brake on investment due to additional costs and/or delays, meaning that network providers will have difficulty committing to roll out, without greater certainty of success.
Alongside the uncertain investment case for 5G and in particular for very dense small cell networks, many challenges stem from the lack of certainty over the benefits that 5G will deliver for the UK.
“The difficulty lies in how to efficiently deploy the infrastructure that 5G requires,” Richard Hooper, chairman of the Broadband Stakeholder Group, said.
5G will bring its own complications to the indoor coverage challenge. It will make greater use of high-frequency spectrum than 4G did. High-frequency spectrum does not penetrate walls as well as low- or mid-frequency spectrum, which could increase the need for indoor networks like DAS, analyst firm GlobalData said.
“Mobile network equipment vendors have, in the past five years, introduced low-power radio network solutions similar to DAS that they say are cost-effective for medium-sized venues,” Ed Gubbins, technology analyst at GlobalData, said.
Distributed small cells have not been as good as DAS at providing support for multiple mobile operators.
“Easing barriers to deploying that result in lengthy delays in site planning, or increase costs of deployment to unrealistic levels, should be a key priority for Government, local authorities and the industry,” Matt Yardley, partner with Analysys Mason, said.
5G opportunity in Korea
KT, a telecom operator in South Korea, said 5G mobile network technology is expected to create 30.3 trillion won in socio-economic value in 2025, 1.5 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).
The report, issued last week by the KT Economics and Management Research Institute (KT EMRI), forecasts that number will increase to at least 47.8 trillion won or $42.2 billion, 2.1 percent of GDP, in 2030.
KT will be launching the world’s first nationwide commercial 5G mobile network in March next year. Some of the 5G use cases explored by KT would include augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) and autonomous driving.
“5G will be used in combination with other key future technologies like AI, big data and IoT,” Kim Hee-Su, head of the KT EMRI, said.
The KT EMRI’s 5G analysis examined South Korea’s 10 major industries — automotive, manufacturing, health care, transportation, agriculture, security and safety, media, energy, logistics and finance.
