Global Progress to 5G - Trials, Deployments and Launches - July 2018 - Prepared by GSA based on information researched from multiple industry sources
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Global Progress to 5G -
Trials, Deployments and
Launches
Prepared by GSA based on information researched
from multiple industry sources
July 2018
©Copyright 2018 Global mobile Suppliers Association 1
Introduction
As the telecom industry races towards the commercial introduction of 5G
technology, the number of operators investing in 5G technologies is growing
substantially. Telecom operators from all continents have announced
involvement with 5G demonstrations, lab tests and field trials. Many have
announced formal plans for the launch of 5G services and some have even
154 operators in
66 countries have now announced small-scale service launches.
demonstrated,
are testing or GSA has identified 154 operators, in 66 countries (shown in Figure 1 below) that
trialling, or have have demonstrated, are testing or trialling, or have been licensed to conduct,
been licensed to field trials of 5G-enabling and candidate technologies.
begin field trials
Figure 1: Countries with operators investing in 5G networks (from pre-commitment trials
of 5G-enabling through to full deployments)
and candidate
technologies;
up from 134
operators in 62
countries in April
2018
There have
been over 412
separate 5G
demonstrations,
tests or trials; up
from 250 at the
start of 2018
Between them, these operators have announced over 412 separate
demonstrations, tests or trials that we have been able to identify. Key 5G
technologies being explored include new radio (NR) interfaces operating in
spectrum bands not previously used for mobile telecoms services and network
slicing to support delivery of services tailored to specific types of customer
or service; combinations of technologies such as massive MIMO, or complex
beam-forming that are needed to achieve very high speeds; and backhaul,
cloud- and edge-computing arrangements to support very low latencies. Note
that our definition of 5G trials exclude – where available data permits – trials
GSA Report | July 2018 | Global Progress to 5G - Trials, Deployments and Launches
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©Copyright 2018 Global mobile Suppliers Association
of so-called ‘massive MIMO’ technologies that do not offer at least 64 transmit
channels at the base station.
Such lower order MIMO trials with 8, 16 or 32 transmit channels (sometimes
claimed by operators as pre-5G or 5G technologies), or where the MIMO order
is not revealed, are now counted in GSA figures as LTE-Advanced or LTE-
Advanced Pro trials as appropriate, unless the tests have other characteristics
that would make them intrinsically 5G (such as use of new very high spectral
frequencies or NR approaches). The 3GPP standards for NR networks capable
of running alongside existing LTE networks, using non-standalone (NSA)
mode for enhanced mobile broadband, were agreed in December 2017. 3GPP
Release 15 Standards for standalone (SA) 5G NR mode for enhanced mobile
broadband networks were completed in June 2018. Further 5G standards
evolution is expected in 3GPP Release 16, due to be completed by December
2019. This report summarises the global state of testing and trialling of 5G
systems by network operators and focuses solely on what operators are
reporting and announcing. It does not analyse trials and tests being run by
vendors independently of licensed network operators, nor does it compare
vendors’ various technologies.
At least 67 projects have involved testing massive MIMO in the context of 5G
(i.e. MIMO trials involving 64 or more transmitters, or lower order MIMO used
on new high frequency spectrum bands or involving some other 5G aspect
such as NR characteristics). This figure is up from 61 in our previous report. We
have identified 92 demos, tests or trials of NR technologies (up from 73 in three
months). We are also monitoring trials of network slicing technology; we have
identified 21 projects that have explicitly featured network slicing compared
to 19 in our previous report. One use-case that has gained prominence is the
use of 5G to deliver fixed wireless broadband services. We have identified 20
tests so far that have specifically focused on the fixed wireless access (FWA)
use-case, which is five more than three months ago.
Operator technology demonstrations, tests and trials
Spectrum bands used in trials
Around the world, regulators are either in the process of holding 5G auctions or
consulting and planning the allocation of 5G-suitable frequencies. At the same
time, operators have been working in many of the candidate spectrum bands.
The chart in Figure 2 shows the spectrum bands that have been used by
GSA Report | July 2018 | Global Progress to 5G - Trials, Deployments and Launches
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©Copyright 2018 Global mobile Suppliers Association
operators in 261 demonstrations/trials where the spectrum details have been
released. Our analysis uses data reported by operators: note that some trials
involved more than one spectrum band, that there are multiple overlapping
spectrum bands reported by different operators, and that some operators
report simply ‘C-band’ or ‘E-band’, or a specific frequency point (such as 3.5
GHz) without elaborating on the upper and lower thresholds of the spectrum
band(s) used.
Figure 2: Count of 5G demonstrations and trials according to spectrum bands used (base: 261
demos/trials where the spectrum used has been stated; often multiple trials per operator)
The 28 GHz band has been most used, followed by the 3.5 GHz band. Allocating
the trials into wider spectrum ranges (as shown in Figure 3) we can see that
sub-6 GHz spectrum has been most used, followed by spectrum between 24
GHz and 29.5 GHz.
GSA Report | July 2018 | Global Progress to 5G - Trials, Deployments and Launches
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©Copyright 2018 Global mobile Suppliers Association
Figure 3: Distribution of number of 5G demonstrations and trials by broad spectrum ranges
(base: 261 demos/trials)
Network throughput
One of the key metrics being reported is the peak downlink throughput of the
various demonstrations, tests and trials. The demonstrations and trials are
not really comparable, as they use varying amounts of spectrum and different
types of equipment, in contrasting physical environments and for a range of
applications. Nonetheless it is interesting to note that many of them report
that speeds well in excess of 1 Gigabit per second have been achieved. Trials
for very high speeds are proofs of concept; it is not expected that commercial
5G networks will be able to deliver the very highest speeds indicated in the
chart below for some time to come. Figure 4 summarises the results of the
demonstrations and trials where information has been made available: 165
in total.
GSA Report | July 2018 | Global Progress to 5G - Trials, Deployments and Launches
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©Copyright 2018 Global mobile Suppliers AssociationFigure 4: Network throughput (DL) reported in 5G demonstrations and trials (base: 165 demos/
trials)
Latency
5G networks are expected to have substantially reduced latency compared
with current mobile networks. This is another key metric for demonstrations
and trials, as vendors and operators seek to achieve the 5G benchmarks. Once
again, the figures reported by demonstrations and trials are not comparable,
as they involve very different configurations (air interface latency, ‘end-to-end’
latency, etc.) and even in field trials, do not take place under real network
conditions but are illustrative of the fact that low latencies are being achieved.
It is interesting to point out that most trials (for which data has been reported)
have achieved latencies of between 1 to 1.99 ms.
Figure 5: Latencies reported in 5G demonstrations and trials (base: 55 demos/trials)
GSA Report | July 2018 | Global Progress to 5G - Trials, Deployments and Launches
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©Copyright 2018 Global mobile Suppliers Association5G launches and deployments
Six telecom operators in six countries claim they have launched 5G networks
in the past two months. These are Elisa Finland, Elisa Estonia, Ooredoo Kuwait,
Ooredoo Qatar, STC Saudi Arabia and Etisalat United Arab Emirates. A seventh
operator – Zain Kuwait claims it has deployed and is commercially piloting a
5G network in selected locations.
However, at present, the lack of commercially available 5G devices is hindering
operators’ efforts to properly launch 5G services. Of those claiming launches,
only Elisa (Finland and Estonia) and STC (Saudi Arabia) have responded to
enquiries from GSA confirming (limited) device availability; in each case the
operator reports use of CPE supplied by Huawei. Our understanding is that
the other operators are waiting for 5G devices so they can introduce services
properly.
Table 1: Operators claiming 5G network deployments/launches
Operator Country Details
Elisa Estonia and Elisa announced the launch of its 5G service in June 2018
Finland with services available in Tallinn city centre in Estonia and
Tampere in Finland. Currently there is at least one Huawei
5G wireless router available, according to Elisa’s press
office. The service uses 100 MHz of bandwidth in the 3.5
GHz band and subscriptions are on sale.
Zain Kuwait Zain Kuwait announced in June 2018 it had deployed and
would be commercially piloting a 5G network in select
locations.
Ooredoo Kuwait Ooredoo Kuwait announced the launched of 5G services in
Doha.
Ooredoo Qatar Ooredoo Qatar announced the launch of 5G services in
May 2018, with 22 5G network towers live by the end of
June.
STC Saudi Arabia In May 2018, STC launched a live network, but stated it was
waiting for devices to use.
Etisalat United Arab Etisalat launched a limited availability commercial 5G
Emirates FWA network in May 2018 using the 3.3–3.8 GHz band.
The service was initially launched in Abu Dhabi with
deployments underway in Dubai also.
5G planned launches
Sixty-six telecom operators in 37 countries have announced intentions of making
5G available to their customers from 2018 onwards. There are 10 launches
planned to take place by the end of 2018. These include the US operators
GSA Report | July 2018 | Global Progress to 5G - Trials, Deployments and Launches
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©Copyright 2018 Global mobile Suppliers AssociationAT&T Mobility and Verizon Wireless, as well as the Bahrain-based Zain. They
are expected to be joined by telecoms operators in Estonia, Finland, Italy,
Qatar, San Marino, Sweden, and Switzerland. At least 17 more 5G networks
are scheduled to become available in 2019. Among them are those operated
by KT, SK Telecom and LG Uplus in South Korea; Optus in Australia; China
Mobile; EE, UK; and Rostelecom, Russia. 2020 is likely to be an important
year for 5G launches, with at least 26 networks currently scheduled to go
live that year. Orange Slovensko and Telefonica Spain have expressed plans
to launch 5G post-2020. The number of operators announcing schedules for
the commercial introduction of 5G services is expected to rise substantially
in the next year to 18 months or so as the first 5G-capable CPE devices and
subsequently, smartphones, start to emerge.
Table 2: Operators planning to launch 5G between 2018 and 2022
Operator Country Details
Optus Australia Optus announced its plans to start rolling out a fixed
wireless 5G network in early 2019.
Telstra Australia Telstra plans to deploy its 5G network in three phases
with full deployment expected in 2020.
Zain Bahrain Zain intends 5G launch in 2018.
Viva Bahrain In May 2018, the company said that once spectrum
is made available, the company plans to deploy and
launch 5G services.
Claro Brazil Claro Brazil plans to launch 5G in 2020.
Telus Canada Telus plans to deploy 5G in the 2019–2020 period.
China Mobile China In May 2018, China Mobile started deployments in
Hangzhou and Shanghai. It plans launch in 2019.
China Unicom China In June 2018, China Unicom started 5G pilot projects
in 16 Chinese cities. It plans to deploy the technology
commercially by 2020.
China Telecom China China Telecom plans commercial 5G launch by 2020.
T-Hrvatski Croatia T-Hrvatski Telekom plans to launch 5G in 2020.
Telekom
Vodafone Czechia Vodafone plans to deploy 5G in the first quarter of
2019.
TeliaEesti Estonia TeliaEesti plans to launch 5G in 2018
TeliaSonera Finland TeliaSonera plans to launch 5G in 2018.
DNA Finland DNA plans to launch 5G in 2019. The operator plans a
5G network demo with expected speeds of more than
1 Gbps in the summer of 2018.
Orange France Orange France plans to deploy 5G by 2020
SFR France SFR’s 5G deployment is planned in 2019 with
commercial launch in 2020.
GSA Report | July 2018 | Global Progress to 5G - Trials, Deployments and Launches
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©Copyright 2018 Global mobile Suppliers AssociationOperator Country Details
Deutsche Germany Deutsche Telekom announced in May 2018 that it
Telekom had deployed six 5G antennas in Berlin. It intends to
(T-Mobile) deploy 70 more at 20 sites during summer 2018 in
preparation for its full 5G deployment, expected for
2020.
Telefonica (O2) Germany In February 2018, Telefonica and Nokia formed a joint
5G Innovation Cluster. Trials are planned in Munich
and Berlin. Deployment is due for 2021.
China Mobile Hong Kong CMHK has received permission to test 5G. The
Hong Kong operator plans tests in the 2nd half of 2018. 5G launch
expected in 2020.
Bharat Sanchar India BSNL is set to launch 5G services in India in 2020.
Nigam Limited
(BSNL)
Vodafone Ireland Vodafone Ireland is expected to introduce 5G in 2020.
TIM Italy TIM plans to establish 75% 5G coverage in its 5G
testing area in Matera and Bari by the end of 2018 and
a full coverage by 2020.
NTT DoCoMo Japan NTT DoCoMo plans to roll out 5G network across
Tokyo for the 2020 Olympic Games. Docomo is
deploying NSA 5G, with plans to later launch 5G SA.
Softbank / Japan Softbank/Ymobile Corp plans to deploy 5G by 2020.
Ymobile Corp
Viva Kuwait Viva Kuwait demonstrated its 5G readiness at its HQ.
Once regulatory approval is received the company
says it will launch for customers.
LMT Latvia LMT's first commercial services are anticipated in 2020.
Spark New Zealand Spark plans to begin rolling out a 5G network in
2018/19.
Vodafone New Zealand Vodafone plans to start switching users to 5G by 2021.
PLDT Philippines PLDT plans 5G commercial roll-out in 2020.
Globe Philippines Globe plans launch of fixed wireless access 5G in 2019.
Orange Polska Poland Orange Polska plans to start testing 5G in 2019 and
plans implementation in 2020/21.
Vodafone Portugal Vodafone Portugal's CEO said he expects the company
to begin offering commercial 5G in 2020.
Vodafone Qatar Vodafone Qatar plans to introduce 5G at the end of
2018.
Orange Romania Orange Romania plans to launch 5G in 2020.
Megafon/Yota Russia Megafon deployed test 5G networks in stadiums
hosting the 2018 World Cup matches in Moscow, and
is planning future full 5G deployment.
GSA Report | July 2018 | Global Progress to 5G - Trials, Deployments and Launches
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©Copyright 2018 Global mobile Suppliers AssociationOperator Country Details
MTS Russia MTS has signed an agreement with Ericsson to
upgrade the operator's network to 5G. 5G launch is
expected in 2020.
Rostelecom Russia Rostelecom plans to deploy a commercial 5G network
in 2019.
TIM San Marino San Marino TIM plans to progressively deploy new technologies
in San Marino (starting in 2018) with a view to making
San Marino one of the first countries in the world with
a 5G service.
Orange Slovenia Orange Slovensko announced plans to launch 5G
Slovensko between 2020 and 2022.
Comsol South Africa Comsol plans to launch trials of FWA 5G in South
Africa with aims to launch services in 2019.
SK Telecom South Korea SK Telecom plans to launch 5G in the first half of 2019.
KT Corporation South Korea KT's network business head said that KT plans to start
providing 5G starting March 2019.
LG Uplus South Korea LG Uplus is expected to launch its 5G network in early
2019.
Telefonica Spain Telefonica plans to launch 5G in 2021.
(Movistar)
Orange Spain Orange plans 5G deployment in 2019 in four Spanish
cities using the 3.5 GHz band.
Masmovil( Spain Masmovil is deploying 5G-ready equipment to
Yoigo) upgrade its network.
SLT (Mobitel) Sri Lanka SLT plans to launch a 5G network by 2020.
TeliaSonera Sweden TeliaSonera plans to launch 5G by the end of 2018.
Tele2 Sweden Sweden Tele2 Sweden signed an agreement to jointly develop
its 5G network with Telenor. 5G launch is expected in
2020.
Telenor Sweden Sweden Telenor Sweden signed an agreement to jointly
develop its 5G network with Tele2 Sweden. 5G launch
is expected in 2020.
Swisscom Switzerland Swisscom's 5G commercial network launch is set for
the end of 2018.
Sunrise Switzerland In June 2018, Sunrise announced that its first 5G
Communications antenna was operational. Full 5G service is expected in
2020.
Salt Switzerland 5G launch is expected in 2020.
Chunghwa Taiwan In January 2018, Chunghwa announced plans to build
Telecom a pre-commercial 5G network in part of Taipei to serve
as a testbed for future projects, with a target launch
date of 2020.
Asia Pacific Taiwan The operator is preparing for 5G launch in 2020.
Telecom
GSA Report | July 2018 | Global Progress to 5G - Trials, Deployments and Launches
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©Copyright 2018 Global mobile Suppliers AssociationOperator Country Details
TrueMove Thailand TrueMove plans to launch 5G in 2020.
EE/BT UK EE/BT plans to launch 5G in 2019.
Vodafone UK Vodafone UK plans to launch 5G in 2020.
O2 UK O2 is expected to launch 5G from 2020 onwards.
3 UK UK In May 2018, Three signed an agreement with SSE
Enterprise Telecoms to bring 20 core datacentres on-
net as it prepares to start rolling out 5G.
Du United Arab In May 2018 the company announced it expects to
Emirates have a 5G network ready in 2018 for the arrival of 5G
devices in 2019.
Sprint USA Sprint has previously plans to launch commercial
services and devices in New York City, Arizona’s largest
city, Phoenix, and its hometown of Kansas City Atlanta,
Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles and Washington
DC in 2019. Following its anticipated merger with
T-Mobile, the combined businesses are expected to
build a 5G network reaching 90% of the US population
by 2024.
AT&T Mobility USA In January 2018, AT&T announced that it expects to
introduce mobile 5G service in a dozen cities including
Dallas, Atlanta and Waco by late 2018.
T-Mobile USA T-Mobile’s 5G deployment was expected to start in
2019 with nationwide coverage in 2020. Following
its anticipated merger with Sprint, the combined
businesses are expected to build a 5G network
reaching 90% of the US population by 2024.
Verizon USA Verizon Wireless plans to commercially deploy 5G
Wireless services in three to five cities in 2018.
DISH USA DISH plans to launch a 5G service in the future, but
is not expected to be able to use its spectrum in the
600 MHz band until it is freed up by boradcasters - not
anticipated much before 2020.
GSA Report | July 2018 | Global Progress to 5G - Trials, Deployments and Launches
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©Copyright 2018 Global mobile Suppliers AssociationFigure 6: Countries that have launched/deployed 5G networks, are planning launches or are in
the process of deployment
5G trials
Over and above those operators who have already announced launches,
deployments, or definite deployment plans, GSA can confirm that there are
at least 81 other operators in 50 countries that are either staging 5G-related
trials or planning to test the technology in the future. Almost half of these
countries (24) are in Europe. Seventeen Asian countries are also conducting
5G trials. Five countries in Latin America and the Caribbean region have
demonstrated different levels of involvement with 5G testing. Canada and USA
in North America, Australia and South Africa are also known to host 5G trialling
activities. (Note that C Spire Wireless says it has launched 5G services, but we
have not had confirmation that it is using 3GPP standardised technology.)
Table 3: Operators staging 5G trials or planning to test the emerging technology
Country Operators Country Operators
Antigua and Cable & Wireless Austria 3 Austria, A1 Telekom,
Barbuda Communications T- Mobile
(FLOW) Bahrain Batelco
Argentina Personal, Movistar Bangladesh Robi Axiata, Teletalk
Armenia Beeline / ArmenTel Belarus becloud
Australia NBN Co, Vodafone Belgium Belgacom / Proximus
GSA Report | July 2018 | Global Progress to 5G - Trials, Deployments and Launches
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©Copyright 2018 Global mobile Suppliers AssociationCountry Operators Country Operators
Brazil Vivo Mexico America Movil (Telcel)
Bulgaria Mtel Netherlands KPN
Canada Bell Mobility, Rogers Norway Telenor
Wireless, Shaw Oman Omantel
Chile Claro Philippines Smart Communications
Colombia Claro, Tigo Portugal Meo
Croatia VIPNet Qatar Ooredoo
Czechia O2 Czech Republic, Romania RCS & RDS (Digi Mobil),
Nordic Telecom (U:fon), Telekom
PODA Russia Tattelecom, Tele2 Russia,
Denmark TDC Vimpelcom (Beeline)
Estonia Tele2 Saudi Arabia Mobily, Zain
France Bouygues Telecom, Free Serbia Telekom Serbia
Germany Vodafone Singapore M1, SingTel, StarHub
Hong Kong 3 HK, Smartone Slovenia Telekom Slovenije
Hungary Magyar Telekom South Africa MTN, Vodacom
India Bharti Airtel Spain Vodafone
Indonesia Telkomsel Taiwan FarEasTone, Taiwan
Iran MTN Irancell Mobile, Taiwan Star
Italy 3 Italia, Fastweb, Linkem, Mobile
Vodafone, Wind Turkey Turk Telecom, Turkcell,
Japan KDDI Vodaonfe Turkey
Lebanon Alfa UK Arqiva
Lithuania Tele2 Ukraine Astelit (lifecell)
Macau 3 Macau, CTM USA C Spire Wireless, Charter
Malaysia Celcom Axiata Communications, US
Cellular
GSA Report | July 2018 | Global Progress to 5G - Trials, Deployments and Launches
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©Copyright 2018 Global mobile Suppliers AssociationFigure 7: Countries with other operators staging (or planning to run) pre-commitment 5G trials*
*Excludes operators listed in Table 2, who are already planning, deploying, have deployed or
launched 5G networks.
Future work
The number of 5G-related activities, launches, deployments and trials around
the world is expected to continue to grow in the coming months as the first
5G-supporting devices emerge on the market from various vendors. GSA will
continue reporting on the developments on a regular basis. If your company
is conducting 5G tests or trials and we do not have you listed, please email us
at research@gsacom.com.
GSA Report | July 2018 | Global Progress to 5G - Trials, Deployments and Launches
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©Copyright 2018 Global mobile Suppliers AssociationAbout GSA
GSA (the Global mobile Suppliers Association) is a not-for-profit industry
organisation representing companies across the worldwide mobile ecosystem
engaged in the supply of infrastructure, semiconductors, test equipment,
devices, applications and mobile support services.
GSA actively promotes the 3GPP technology road-map – 3G, 4G, 5G – and
is a single source of information resource for industry reports and market
intelligence. GSA Members drive the GSA agenda and define the communications
and development strategy for the Association.
Membership of GSA is open to any supplier of products; systems or services
related to the mobile industry and brings many benefits including access to
the GAMBoD database. The range of benefits includes enhanced discussion,
networking and influencing opportunities on the key industry topics, and
unique promotional/visibility opportunities for your company name, capabilities,
positioning and messages. More details can be found at https://gsacom.com/
gsa-membership/
News/updates: RSS Feed: https://gsacom.com/rss-feeds/
GSA LinkedIn group: www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=2313721
Twitter: www.twitter.com/gsacom
Contact
GSA Secretariat
Email: research@gsacom.com
Tel: +44 330 113 1572
GSA website: https://gsacom.com
NOTE: Errors and omission excepted
GSA Report | July 2018 | Global Progress to 5G - Trials, Deployments and Launches
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