Delegates at the CW Future of Wireless International Conference, which recently took place in London, gave their opinion on 5G technology. They gave it a big thumbs down for use in the near future.
The reason 5G is not needed soon, and why most voted against it, was explained by the CEO of Cambridge Wireless (CW), Bob Driver: “The lively debate encapsulated the positive mood of the conference and need for rapid progress to support the next generation of wireless services.
“However, the vote against 5G reflected a strong feeling that 5G and future of wireless connectivity in general, was so vital to every industry sector, and every citizen, that the development needed to embrace a wider constituency. It was clear that there is a need to consider the wider business models necessary to lead the industry, rather than only focusing on the technologies.”
Although it was generally agreed that for all types of companies across the industry spectrum, 5G would bring benefits, the problem is that with innovations coming so quickly, it’s hard to predict what will be needed in the decade 2020 to 2030, so a highly efficient and flexible system is required to cover all possibilities.
The conference debate looked at current definitions of 5G requirements. Experts believe that the sheer power of mobile technology at all levels is something that was beyond our imagination even ten years ago. At the start of this century, there were less than a billion people who could access the internet. By 2020, it is predicted that 4 billion smartphones will be in use globally. With an industry developing so fast, the infrastructure needs to be able to embrace both speed and security across all connectable devices, such as computers, sensors, wearables and phones.
The 5G revolution will certainly change the way companies carry out their business, but what is needed is a blueprint to work from, similar to GSM and mobile broadband.