Metaverse: What are the four pillars?

As a new paradigm of industrial Internet, the Metaverse is currently limited by the maturity of key factors such as XR terminals, real-time computing power and data security, and cannot continue to use the traditional Internet "website-user" centralized development model.

The Metaverse has extremely high requirements for end-to-end customer experience and service level assurance . Distributed and hotspot-based are new paths for the development of the Metaverse. The digital computing power network characterized by the "super cloud network" is the four pillars of the Metaverse.

China has opened 1.425 million 5G base stations, accounting for more than 60% of the world. The latest international standard R16 version of 5G launched by the three major operators, through the construction of a new 5G core network 5GC and 5G wireless network NR, that is, the independent networking 5G SA mode, the network downlink performance index is as high as 10-20Gbps, the minimum one-way delay of the user plane is 1ms, the control plane delay is 20ms, and the minimum reliability requirement is 99.999%, becoming a new ubiquitous productivity infrastructure.

In addition to 5G, full-access networks such as fixed fiber optic networks, Wi-Fi6, dedicated lines and NB-IoT will jointly form the super "local public network" of the metaverse, supporting strict requirements for access speed, uplink speed, end-to-end latency, jitter, packet loss rate, security and privacy, massive device access and high-reliability communication.

5G Private Network

The user experience of C-end consumers on 5G networks has been significantly improved, the network download speed and stability have been further improved, the power consumption of pan-smart terminals has been optimized, and new experiences such as 4K live broadcast, 8K video, cloud rendering-based metaverse mixed reality XR, cloud games, cloud applications, cloud terminals, etc. have become a reality around us.

From the analysis of service key performance indicator latency, the acceptable latency for voice and video calls by C-end consumers should be less than 150 milliseconds, for interactive games less than 50 milliseconds, and for immersive virtual-reality interactive experience applications less than 20 milliseconds. Considering that the electrical latency of multi-modal smart terminals requires 10 milliseconds, combined with the consideration of the total construction and operation cost To C, it is necessary to build a 5G private network based on location-based service LBS on the basis of the 5G public network, so as to realize the core tasks of the Metaverse such as data transmission, cloud rendering, and network-side content and application calls with higher standards.

Judging from the current global market practices, there are six successful practices for building 5G private networks : first, public networks that use public network infrastructure and spectrum, such as mobile edge computing MEC and UPF; second, public networks with service quality commitments SLA; third, public networks with network slicing; fourth, private networks with shared infrastructure; fifth, private networks that use telecom operators' spectrum and proprietary network equipment; and sixth, private networks that use unauthorized or private spectrum and proprietary network equipment.

5G private networks will deploy new security strategies and security equipment to ensure the absolute security and robust operation of key infrastructure and digital assets such as B-end customer assets and C-end consumer customer data in the cloud universe.

5G Industry Applications

While collaborating with the three major telecom operators to actively apply the latest 5G industry applications such as sports star digital intelligence, XR studios, AR football fields, and cloud live broadcasts, the Metaverse super "local public network" can also jointly develop and expand 5G-Advanced-based technology services based on strong content traffic such as landmark projects and cultural and sports IPs, and create innovative test beds and benchmark projects for national 5G industry applications in the fields of XR multimedia enhancement, mobile computing network applications, AI and machine learning, the Internet of Things, low carbon, and blockchain .

5G messaging

5G messages use the native SMS button of 5G smartphones as the entry point, supporting C-end consumers to use a variety of rich media message forms such as text, audio and video, group chat, file transfer, content sharing during calls, etc., and can achieve a one-stop business experience such as interaction, search, sharing and payment in the message window. Through the effective integration of multimedia information, 5G messages provide B-end customers with an information and service interaction interface with C-end consumers to achieve personalized services.

5G messages have revolutionary advantages such as information as platform (MaaP), user as customer (SaaC), and smartphone as application (SaaA). They tear down the data wall between B-end customers and C-end consumers. Every smartphone will be the traffic entrance of the metaverse.

Super Uplink

The resource allocation of public mobile networks is more biased towards the downlink. The uplink and downlink ratios of the 5G networks of China's three major operators are 2:8 and 3:7 respectively, and the uplink speed is around 100Mbps, which is significantly different from the downlink speed. The Metaverse needs to upload massive amounts of user-generated content (UGC) such as videos, e-sports, and live broadcasts, and massive amounts of machine-generated content (MGC) such as sensors, autonomous driving, high-definition cameras, and intelligent robots in real time, which requires a new super uplink . While 5G wireless networks reasonably allocate uplink resources, they also need to comprehensively consider 4G and 5G, as well as the dynamic sharing of resources between licensed and unlicensed spectrum. The uplink rate of the Metaverse will exceed 1000Mbps.

MEC

Mobile edge computing MEC adds computing, storage, rendering and other functions to the local wireless network side of the metaverse, effectively integrating 5G wireless networks and the Internet, opening up information interaction between the network and business servers through wireless API interfaces, and building an open platform to support applications.

Serving business experiences such as video, entertainment, retail, and the Internet of Things, MEC can use 5G wireless networks to provide nearby IT services and cloud computing functions required by the metaverse, creating a telecommunications-grade service environment with high performance, low latency, and high bandwidth , accelerating the rapid invocation of various content, services, and applications in the network, allowing C-end consumers to enjoy a high-quality network experience.

Through MEC's ​​location-based deployment strategy, Metaverse will be able to provide more accurate centimeter-level enhanced business, entertainment, and social services by obtaining wireless network information and location information in real time.

UPF

As an important core network element device deployed on the enterprise customer side, UPF is responsible for the core functions of data traffic processing and routing strategies on the user plane of commercial customers. Commercial customers can adopt self-control, setting and updating management strategies such as forwarding and unloading of local data, and highly sensitive data such as commercial operations and purely local data will not need to enter the public network.

UPF's end-to-end hard-sliced ​​pipeline, high-security isolation, deterministic latency, and plug-and-play revolutionary deployment method have greatly improved the convenience and security of 5G private network applications in the Metaverse. UPF can integrate complex 5G private networks into a cabinet through a "six-in-one" integrated design of minimalist UPF, 5G core network, BBU, small SPN, modular switches, and edge computing applications , achieving rapid local deployment.

UPF will provide Metaverse with more refined management, more convenient services and more controllable costs, including local data access, precise positioning and security services, and expanded 4K/8K ultra-high-definition connection management .

Millimeter wave

Millimeter wave will bring new solutions to the network quality and customer experience of key business areas of the Metaverse and key professional users such as media live broadcasts, UP hosts, e-sports hosts, and business hosts .

The global 5G network frequency bands are mainly divided into two categories: centimeter waves below 6GHz and millimeter waves above 24GHz. Like most countries where 5G is commercially available, my country has built 5G base stations in the frequency band below 6GHz, which has the advantages of wide signal coverage and a mature industrial chain.

The physical properties of millimeter waves determine their absolute advantages of short base station coverage radius and fast transmission speed. In addition, the standard bandwidth of 5G networks in the 6GHz band is 100MHz, while that of millimeter waves reaches 800MHz. The new enhanced ultra-wideband connection is the optimal solution for high concurrency, high traffic, and high uplink of the Metaverse to meet the high-speed requirements of AR/XR mixed reality.

Taking the US version of iPhone as an example, the download speed in the millimeter wave network environment is as high as 4Gbps. The 5G millimeter wave base stations commercially used by Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile US in the United States have a coverage radius of 3 kilometers, enabled by new technologies such as beam forming. Millimeter waves will bring revolutionary wireless network capabilities and experiences to the Metaverse, and drive the rapid and high-quality development of multi-format smart terminals and XR content applications.

5G Broadcast

The State Administration of Radio and Television proposed to "accelerate the integrated development of national cable TV network integration and radio and television 5G construction, carry out 5G broadcasting technology applications, standard setting, trial verification and business development, and promote radio and television terminals, mobile access, and everyone's access." 5G broadcasting includes large tower broadcasting that supports a coverage radius of 100 kilometers and small tower broadcasting that supports mobile communication base stations. Small tower broadcasting has the characteristics of low power and low site, and is suitable for small-scale temporary radio and television services. It has strong flexibility and commercial value.

In the hotspot, distributed metaverse, massive amounts of content need to be pushed in the form of high-quality audio-visual media content such as 4K/8K and VR/AR. On-site audiences also need to watch high-definition digital content such as real-time multi-angle live broadcasts. The existing radio and television networks are unable to meet the needs of the majority of users for upgraded consumption experience. 5G broadcasting will become an important new communication channel.

5G broadcasting can provide common content and public services through large tower broadcasting, and can provide hot spot area broadcasting and value-added services through small tower broadcasting. It can also connect with third-party service providers according to the preferences of C-end consumers and provide new media services and content in an OTT manner. At the same time, 5G broadcasting can also be incorporated into the national emergency broadcasting system to help the government effectively improve its emergency management and handling capabilities for public events.

Conclusion

Metaverse is a killer application and customer for telecom operators' digital computing networks. Metaverse's super "local cloud network" relies on 5G and other public communication networks in terms of technology. It uses advanced digital orchestration and networking technologies such as network slicing NS, network function virtualization NFV, software-defined network SDN and service-based architecture SBA to achieve communication capabilities SLA and service assurance level QoS that are superior to public communication networks.

The Metaverse's super "local area cloud network" does not need to bear high investment and operating costs for building dedicated networks and dedicated lines . It has a relatively mature solution in technology and great cost advantages in business. Joint research and development and joint operations with strong IP champions among industry customers will become the key to the Metaverse's breakthrough from 0 to 1.

Expert Profile

Ge Qi

A senior figure in the communications industry, a senior engineer, a member of the Standing Committee of the Third Committee of the China Central Enterprise Youth Federation, a part-time professor at the School of Economics and Management of Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, the chief architect of GTVerse, the Secretary-General of the Smart Party Building Research Center of Renmin University of China, a senior researcher at the Blockchain Research Institute, the Chief Digital Economy Expert of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State-owned Enterprise Investment Association, a member of the China-UK Young Leaders Roundtable Forum, and the Secretary-General of the Digital Economy Research Center of Pangu Think Tank.