Who doesn’t love fast internet? Almost everyone does, so it isn’t a surprise that all major players in the telecom industry are working hard to make mobile internet speeds even faster. However, to make that happen, they need to accommodate enough bandwidth and speed to accommodate the demanding needs of today’s mobile users as well as future ones.
In simple words, 5G refers to the 5 Generation wireless tech. It’s the next major iteration of cellular technology, designed to significantly enhance the efficiency and speed of wireless networks. Using this technology, cellular networks will be able transmit data over mobile network connections at a rate as fast as 20 Gbps – bypassing wireline speeds – and offer 1 ms or lower latency for feedback in real-time.
Who’s Behind The 5G Standard
3GPP (The 3rd Generation Partnership Project), the body that governs cellular standards, slated 5G’s first formal standard named 5G NR (New Radio) standards in December 2017. There are three Technical Specification Groups (TSGs) in 3GPP:
- RANs (Radio access networks)
- SA (Services and Systems Aspects)
- CT (Core Network and Terminals )
These TSGs regularly meet and discuss current and future trends for efficient standards development. It’s important to note that GSM, GPRS, LTE, and LTE- Advanced standards have also been developed under the 3GPP. Now that 5G has emerged, the preparations to launch it also being overseen by the 3GPP. This is uncharted territory because 5G will cover areas which were not under 3GPP’s original scope. More members will be added, and more industries will be considered in the decision-making process.
The 5G standardization will begin from a concept phase, leading on to a project proposal that should be backed by at least four members of the body. If it passes, it becomes a study item that can be improved and tested accordingly. Currently, 3GPP is working on some of the first 5G related advancements. The contributions made by each company bear fruit if their project becomes a success.
For example, Qualcomm has been heavily involved in developing 5G products and showing them at the annual Mobile World Congress. Qualcomm’s research can be of immense importance to the 3GPP in devising the correct standards for worldwide implementation of 3GPP.
The body is also expected to finish the core standard needed for 5G cellular deployments by the end of 2018. Even though 5G radio system won’t have compatibility with 5G radios, network operations who have bought wireless radios might be able to upgrade to new 5G standards through the use of software rather than purchasing equipment.
The completed 5G specifications covers a broad range from the 600 and 700 MHz bands to 50 GHz’s millimeter wave portion. Now that the groundwork has been laid for the standard, the ball is in the court of hardware firms and network service providers to deliver something exceptional, and that might take a while to happen.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) started laying out rules for 5G in July 2016, making the U.S. the first country launching high-band spectrum for the wireless standard. Due to spectrum bands being offered to share, unlicensed and licensed users, 4x the spectrum is available for usage on a flexible basis than in past years. Moreover, 15x more spectrum that is unlicensed is present for users than in past years.
Who Else Is Involved?
Similar to LTE’s case, most of the 5G NR work is being carried out by Qualcomm, and as far as the rest of the technology is concerned, almost every equipment marker and mobile carrier is endeavoring to get a slice of the pie. For instance, apart from Qualcomm, the main companies carrying out 5G work are Nokia and Ericsson when it comes to the equipment side and SK Telecom, T-Mobile, Sprint, Verizon, DoCoMo and Vodafone on the side of the operator, although more than 40 companies gave their signature on the March 2017 agreement to speed up 5G NR developments.
Qualcomm has made OFDM-based (optimized) wavelengths that carry the capability to scale both the time domains and frequency, as well as a new framework for 5G NR to efficiently multiplex 5G features and services. At the beginning of 2017, Qualcomm, with partners ZTE and Ericsson, had shared news about trials related to 5G NR that would involve Telstra, Vodafone, China Mobile, AT&T, DoComo, SK Telecom, and NTT. The company also increased the range of the Qualcomm Snapdragon X50 5G modem family to feature new multi-mode modems that would be able to accommodate the official 5G NR standard, both mmWave (multi-band) and sub_6GHz, and LTE Gigabit on one chip.
In October of 2017, the company announced the first data connection on the Snapdragon X50, which is a 5G modem featuring a single chip. The company also previewed the first mmWave 5G reference design for a smartphone. A month before these developments, China Mobile, Qualcomm and ZTE finished the very first Interoperability Data Testing (IoDT) for 5G NR, showcasing a successful data connection based on the 5G NR standard that’s finalized by 3GPP.
3GPP agreed to accelerate 5G NR development in March 2017. Pre-commercial trials are already happening, so it won’t be long till the US receives it’s first NR-capable products. Though there’s still a lot to be done for making 5G NR standalone a reality, developments indicate promising signs for 2019.
What’s The Timeline for 5G Standardization?
The ITU – International Telecommunication Union of United Nations – has established a timeline for the standardization of the 5G protocol, called IMT-2010, which is expected to be met by 2020. In that effort, 3GPP held some workshops to start work on 5G RAN and conducted more research on radio-related technologies to meet the proposed timeline.
However, 3GPP isn’t the only organization to drive 5G RAN development. As mentioned earlier, many telecommunication and electronic companies are aiming to start full-scale development of 5G NR for commercial deployments as early as next year.
Regardless of the big giants from a wide variety of industries trying to get a hold on 5G standardization, veterans of the wireless industry are still expected to have the most clout when it comes to finalizing goals for network standards. While ITU will be doing most of the coordination, they’re also partnering with other frontrunners to develop 5G standards. Their other choice? 5GPPP, or 5G infrastructure Private Public Partnership.
5GPPP is regarded as the frontrunners of the standardization of 5G protocol. Its goals consist of 90 percent energy reduction (in smartphones), universal and safe service with little to no latency, increase in end-user security and dense links for wireless communications. Also, the group has plans to keep 20 percent of essential patents that are associated with 5G. In coordination with ITU, the body conducted R&D through 2017, with trials and standardizations planned for this year.
Overall, 5GPPP is doing a great job at disseminating a lot of details, and it’s also bringing in major players. That claim is evident by 5GPPP’s line of subgroups, including 5GNORMA, mmMAGIC and METIS-II, each of which focuses on one element in 5G.
In addition to 5GPPP, 3GPP is going to be the driving force behind the creation of 5G standards. These two continue to be the most important groups for 5G technology’s development.
How Long till 5G Becomes a Reality?
Several carriers have announced that 5G will be coming out as part of a wire-spread roll in 2020. Verizon wants to be the first in the market and plans to roll out fixed 5G in select markets by the end of 2018. Also, the carrier is making efforts to improve its infrastructure to be the world’s first 5G mobile service. AT&T has made a commitment to roll out the 5G network in cities like Atlanta and Waco using the mmWave spectrum band in 2018. Their 5G will include LTE as the backbone, with the user’s device picking up 5G when they’re close to one of AT&T’s transmitters.
T-Mobile also plans to roll out 5G next in major cities like Los Angeles, Dallas, Las Vegas, and New York. Similar to AT&T, 5G on T-Mobile will also be piggybacking on the LTE spectrum, benefitting those who are near the T-Mobile transmitter. On a realistic scale, limited 5G service will be available in these cities when 5G-enabled smartphones began to arrive. Sprint plans to make 5G available in big cities too using Massive MIMO antennas, and promise that customers should begin to see faster speeds from April 2018 onwards, even if they own 4G enabled smartphones. Sprint too will rely on the LTE spectrum to deliver 5G connectivity.
The standardization process of 5G is long and intricate. It has been established that 3GPP and its participating bodies have a major role to play in the success of this process. Without the feedback of major bodies all over the world, 5G will not be as big a success as it is expected to be. It is a foundation on which the wireless internet of tomorrow will thrive and evolve. If the standardization is successful, it will be another feather to the crown for 3GPP. Moreover, the telecom industry will benefit from these standards and create better devices to support this emerging technology.