12
OPINION
10Mbps or the fastest available – this falls short of the
Gigabit speeds promised. Furthermore, consistency is a
concerning issue, with both speed and coverage variable
within the launch city locations. On the plus side, Vodafone
has offered an unlimited data plan that will begin to chip
away at one of the big pillars of operator revenues, i.e.
mobile data costs.
So why have EE, Vodafone and Three rushed to
announce 5G networks that are still more of a half-promise
than a reality? The answer is a land grab, to try and get
to market first with something, rather than nothing. The
impact for businesses that want to make investments
in high-speed wireless technology, leveraging the value
of repeatable, consistent, widespread and easy to use
services, is that 5G is already a significant disappointment.
Carriers will need to raise their game significantly if they
want businesses to invest their communications budgets in
the new technology.
"5G technology looks good on paper and there
have been significant deployments in the US
and other countries. But there remains a
numberof significant infrastructure challenges"
E V O L V I N G
5G dissected
While the Tier 1 network providers are promising to rapidly
expand the 5G network range, with EE planning to upgrade
more than 100 sites to 5G every month, this is very much a
work in progress. On the plus side, the 5G network will address
the capacity issues facing overloaded 4G networks, enabling
millions of additional connections on the existing spectrum.
But what about the other key aspects of the 5G network
offering? 5G has been touted as a viable alternative to
leased lines and a chance for companies to avoid expensive
fibre or copper-based Ethernet connections. Unfortunately,
the promised fixed wireless access based on millimetre
wave (FWA) – essentially high-speed connections between
two points – requires significant infrastructure change that
the network providers are struggling to deliver. Rather than
towers, FWA is a short-range service and, as such, demands
extremely high antenna density, with small cells (antennas)
deployed on buildings, street furniture and lamp posts just
10m apart.
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