Chinese firms gain lead in the race for 5G edge

[Yizhi]

China Mobile eyes 5G technology
2015-01-31



BEIJING, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- China Mobile, the country's largest 4G mobile network operator, has began development on the next generation of mobile internet following the success of 4G, a senior executive of the company said on Saturday.

Xi Guohua, chairman of the board for the telecom giant, made the announcement during the 13th China Enterprise Development Forum held by the Development Research Center of the State Council.

The move suggested the company is trying to maintain its leading position in an increasingly heated competition among the country's three and only telecom service providers.

However, Xi did not unveil more details on the ambitious strategy.

China Mobile outperformed its two rivals, China Unicom and China Telecom, in the 4G race after getting official approval to launch services based on TD-LTE standard by the end of 2013, nearly half a year ahead of the latter two.

China Mobile had 90 million 4G subscribers last year with 240 million cell phones sold and 700,000 base stations built, data from the company showed.

The other two operators did not release relevant data but media reports said even their combined figure cannot compete with China Mobile.

In addition, Xi said the successful development of TD-LTE improves China's research capability and equipment manufacturing.

China co-launched Global TD-LTE Initiative (GTI) in 2011 with telecom operators from other countries to promote the 4G technology in the world.

 

[joey_go]

Chinese firms gain lead in the race for 5G edge


In the 2015 MWC, it is hold a GTI conference. in the speech by Zhao Houling, who is the secretary-general of ITU, he say that 4G's development is very fast, and TD-LTE is masterly. as for 5G, we hope China can take the contribution and the new technology.

according to the data, then number of 4G customer of China mobile has reached 100 million. Last year 700 thousands 4G base station has completed. next year the goal of China mobile is 150 million 4G consumer, and the complete 1 million base station.

otherwise, with the FDD license has released, 4G begin to be integrated development in China. Zhao Houlin infer that 4G has a good development in China, so as for 5G hope that China can lead and unite other partner from other countries to develop the 5G technology.

in the MWC conference in 2015, 5G technology is focused on by the industrial circle. Chinese communication industry has stayed at the increasing phase compare with the international. the upper hand and discourse power has reflected by degrees. in the conference, ZTE release a new kind of 5G base station, and it can be commercial. HUAWEI also reflect a new 5G cyber infrastructure.

otherwise, Zhao say that in his presentation, with the quite development of mobile broadband, the limited of the spectrum resource is important problem. at the same time this problem need handle with, and ITU will study and discuss for it.

 

[xunzi]

Our model is always don't talk but do it.

 

[joey_go]

Our model is always don't talk but do it.

model? what does this word mean in this sentence?sorry my poor English...

 

[TaiShang]

ZTE set to double 5G R&D funding to $400M, chief scientist reveals
February 16, 2015 | By Michael Carroll

ZTE is set to double its annual 5G research and development spend to around $400 million (€350 million) and add another 800 engineers to laboratories focused on the next generation technology in 2015, the company's chief scientist said.

Xiang Jiying told the Wall Street Journal that the Chinese vendor will double the number of R&D staff working on 5G to 1,600 people at its four dedicated research facilities in Europe, the U.S. and China. Xiang added that ZTE began researching 5G in 2012, and said the company has already developed some pre-5G upgrades for current LTE networks.

The next generation technology has enabled ZTE to close the gap on Ericsson in terms of development, Xiang told the Journal in an exclusive interview. While the Chinese vendor lagged far behind Ericsson in the 2G and 3G era, the company closed in when it came to developing LTE, and is almost on par in terms of 5G development.

Xiang concurred with most rival infrastructure companies regarding the timing of the launch of the first 5G networks, putting the date at 2020. However, he noted it is already technically possible to launch 5G networks, and said progress is slow due to the difficulties in establishing common specifications and standards for the technology.

Rival infrastructure vendors including Huawei have their ideas of what 5G technology should be, Xiang explained, adding that once a standard is defined, it could take another two years for chipset manufacturers to produce working silicon and for network operators to upgrade base stations.

When 5G networks do come, they will signal a shift in the mobile device market, Xiang predicted. Wearable devices including spectacles and watches will improve over the next five years to become the device of choice of consumers who no longer want to carry around a large smartphone, he said.

ZTE's domestic rival Huawei in November announced plans to invest £5 million (€6.7 million/$7.6 million) in the UK-based University of Surrey's 5G Innovation Centre, as part of a $600 million investment in 5G R&D through 2018.

Additional reading:

Huawei commits £5M to UK 5G research centre

 

[OrionHunter]

5G?? Damn! I have a smart phone but still stuck with 2G!! It's like having a Ferrari on cycle tyres! Jeeez!

 

[TaiShang]

China Mobile inks 5G pact with Asia's top carriers
Shanghai Daily, March 4, 2015

Asia's top mobile carriers, including China Mobile, have signed an agreement to jointly develop 5G, or fifth-generation, network technology, which is expected to make its debut by 2020, the mobile carriers announced yesterday.

China Mobile, KT from South Korea and NTT DoCoMo from Japan signed the agreement in Barcelona during the 2015 Mobile World Congress.

Running short of new phone designs, leaders of the world's wireless industry agreed that their next big idea was 5G.

The 5G technology will be ready around 2020. It is expected to offer users faster network connections and new high-bandwidth services, analysts said.

The three Asian mobile operators, which, between them, have more than 1 billion mobile users, will share key information on technology to develop customized 5G tech specifically for the Asian market.

They will also launch a joint verification and trial test for advanced wireless technology to establish a standard in 5G and the Internet of Things, referring to wireless communications connecting smartphones and other devices such as TV, car and washing machine.

As founders of Global TD-LTE Initiative (GTI), China Mobile and Airtel will cooperate on standards and products development, and promoting ecosystem to accelerate the commercial use of TD-LTE 4G technology and evolving 4.5G/5G technologies.

Both carriers will establish a joint strategy for procurement of devices that include portable Wi-Fi devices, smartphones, data cards and LTE consumer premise equipment.

 

[xunzi]

model? what does this word mean in this sentence?sorry my poor English...

It means we don't promise, we make it happen.

 

[Jlaw]

In the 2015 MWC, it is hold a GTI conference. in the speech by Zhao Houling, who is the secretary-general of ITU, he say that 4G's development is very fast, and TD-LTE is masterly. as for 5G, we hope China can take the contribution and the new technology.

according to the data, then number of 4G customer of China mobile has reached 100 million. Last year 700 thousands 4G base station has completed. next year the goal of China mobile is 150 million 4G consumer, and the complete 1 million base station.

otherwise, with the FDD license has released, 4G begin to be integrated development in China. Zhao Houlin infer that 4G has a good development in China, so as for 5G hope that China can lead and unite other partner from other countries to develop the 5G technology.

in the MWC conference in 2015, 5G technology is focused on by the industrial circle. Chinese communication industry has stayed at the increasing phase compare with the international. the upper hand and discourse power has reflected by degrees. in the conference, ZTE release a new kind of 5G base station, and it can be commercial. HUAWEI also reflect a new 5G cyber infrastructure.

otherwise, Zhao say that in his presentation, with the quite development of mobile broadband, the limited of the spectrum resource is important problem. at the same time this problem need handle with, and ITU will study and discuss for it.

Why is China still developing 4g when it's here already

model? what does this word mean in this sentence?sorry my poor English...

少说做铁道部

 

[StarCraft_ZT]

Why is China still developing 4g when it's here already


少说做铁道部

because FDD LTE is not China's，china should make own 4G

 

[Jlaw]

because FDD LTE is not China's，china should make own 4G

Ok, just confused due to using same term

 

[TaiShang]

A bit unrelated but still interesting.

Huawei and Intel Collaborate on Public Cloud Computing
2015-03-05 10:23:40 CRIENGLISH.com

View of the stand of Huawei during the Huawei cloud computing Conference 2013 (HCC2013) in Shanghai, China, 2 September 2013. [Photo: Imagine China]

Chinese telecom giant Huawei is now working with US chip giant Intel on cloud computing.

The two are working on a project to create new servers, a data center, software and cyber security for a global cloud-computing network.

Cloud computing allows users to access data and files through separate devices through the internet.

The advancement of Cloud technology is expected to create 40-thousand jobs in China this year.

Microsoft, Amazon and Alibaba are already invested in cloud computing here in China.

 

[theniubt]

HUAWEI wins 5G standard
By Kim Yoo-chul

BARCELONA, Spain ― Korea's mobile carriers SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus are being urged to cooperate with each other to team up with other overseas carriers in order to enjoy "first-mover" advantage in the race to set up standards for fifth-generation (5G) wireless technology.

The 2014 Mobile World Congress (MWC) featured the benefits of 5G over today's long-term evolution (LTE) tech, the Internet of Things (IoT), Samsung Electronics Galaxy S6, LG's stylish smartwatch and products for augmented reality.

While Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf indicated that the concept of 5G was still very much under discussion, saying he thinks the next-generation technology should target user-centric connectivity, KT and SK are moving ahead rapidly with 5G.

"You should understand that even if KT wants to lead in establishing new standards in 5G, it can't do it alone and this is the same for SK Telecom and LG Uplus. We should be strategic. Teaming up with China's Huawei Technologies is one good option," said a KT official.

KT CEO and Chairman Hwang Chang-gyu stressed the needs for the new standard during a keynote speech at the MWC. Hwang said 5G network costs will be significantly lower.

But officials who've meet with The Korea Times at the tech fair said it's highly unlikely that Korea will set up standards in 5G or even the IoT as it did in the past with CDMA .

"Korea was the frontrunner to set standards in CDMA technology. But when you talk about 5G, this will be led by top-tier Chinese and Japanese companies. Korean carriers should look to partnering with them as a second option," said an official at a partner company of SK Telecom.

Nokia Networks' CEO Rajeev Suri said the 2018 Winter Olympics 5G service will be a trial network and added he doesn't see commercial services until 2020.

Huawei Technologies and NTT DoCoMo have teamed up to develop 5G radio access technology.

The two companies said the tests will be carried out in both China and Japan with the aim of validating relevant technology for emerging 5G networks, whose commercial launch has been predicted for 2020, the same year the Olympic Games will be held in Tokyo.

"We will see more strategic alliances for 5G technology."

At the fair, Samsung Electronics received positive reviews for its new Galaxy smartphones ― the Galaxy S6 and Edge. Senior executive at the company's handset business Lee Young-hee boasted of better camera features than those on Apple's current iPhone.

Samsung's cross-town rival LG Electronics impressed at the show by exhibiting its Urbane-branded smartwatch. But the absence of LG's new flagship smartphone ― the LG G4 ― disappointed the show organizers.

The emergence of new mobile ecosystem such as FireFox and Tizen was cited as one of the major trends during the fair, according to officials.

Google returned to the MWC this year for the first time in two years, while Samsung held an event for developers of its Tizen platform.

KT, SKT urged to partner with Huawei for 5G

 

[theniubt]

Huawei aims to be at forefront of 5G technology

The scale of Huawei’s ambitions as a provider of global telecoms equipment was made apparent by the size of the vast building it occupied in the first hall met by visitors entering Mobile World Congress.

Now the group wants to be at the forefront of the next generation of mobile technology — the so-called 5G networks — which is still so early in its development that even the definition of what it might be is still being debated.

Ken Hu, deputy chairman of Huawei, has his own ideas about how 5G will look — connections for more than 100bn devices with speeds of up to 10Gbps — and makes it clear that the Chinese telecoms group will be in a leading position to set standards in future.

This is important for Huawei as it could end up owning the essential patents that the telecoms industry needs to license in future.

Ownership of patents has been big business for companies such as Nokia and Ericsson, which dominated much of the intellectual property rights from previous generations of network and mobile devices. This time, Huawei is in the race to develop 5G network ideas, working both collaboratively at an industry level but also in its own labs.

“Undoubtedly Huawei has become one of the leaders when it comes to 5G,” said Mr Hu. “We started six years ago and made a large number of technological breakthroughs. It can definitely help Huawei take a stronger position in terms of 5G related IPR.”

5G was one of the many innovations that Huawei was showing off at its stand at the Barcelona trade show, which grows bigger and more luxurious every year. This year, the space the Chinese group occupied was so big that a signpost needed to be erected in the centre of the two-storey structure to help direct the hundreds of potential buyers of its latest generations of telecoms technology.

A map was provided to guide people around the halls of equipment that it sells to the world’s telecoms operators that offer superfast connectivity and advanced analytical network management.

Other rooms were dedicated to its consumer business, showing off its latest premium smartphones and a round-faced smartwatch launched at Mobile World Congress to positive reviews.

In years past, Huawei’s equipment has been sniffed at by rivals as inferior copies of western tech, but few doubt the effectiveness of its decade-long R&D drive that has taken the company into the vanguard of mobile telecoms technology alongside European rivals such as Ericsson and Nokia. In 2004, Huawei spent $600m annually on research. This had increased 10-fold to $6.5bn by 2014.

This already generated remarkable growth over the past decade, taking revenues from $4bn in 2004 to $46bn in 2014. But this ascent has led to questions about whether it has had some help.

The group has been dogged by accusations of links with the Chinese government and questions over the security of its telecoms equipment. Huawei has denied any connection with the state, but has still striven to improve its standing in the west.

Most recently, Huawei has recruited BP’s former boss Lord Browne to head a board of directors for its business in the UK, where it also opens up its equipment for inspection at a cyber security centre in Banbury.

However, the group has still found it difficult to do business in the US, where a congressional report recommended against using telecoms equipment provided by the company.

Mr Hu said the US is still “not a top priority in our business”, when asked whether the company was still finding it difficult to work in the country. He said such restrictions would have no impact on collaborative work around 5G.

He said that as Huawei develops the next generation of telecoms equipment, the US may need to open its doors to the Chinese group. “As Huawei becomes more innovative, a lot of our products and technologies will be needed by the US market.”

 

[cirr]

ZTE is another must-have cooperation partner in the race for fifth-generation (5G) wireless technology.