Review of 5G industry virtual private networks in 2021: Blooming in multiple places and sailing with the momentum

If 5GToC helped operators achieve a return to basic value in the past year, then 5GToB has taken an important step from "0 to 1", helping operators achieve a leap in value.

Compared with the familiar ToC business, it was found in practice that ToB business is different from traditional public network business. Different industries have significantly differentiated characteristics, and the degree of information technology demand for business scenarios among industries is also different. Therefore, the three major operators have launched customizable 5G industry virtual private networks to meet user customization needs.

From the point of view of time, the three major operators successively released commercial 5G private network solutions at the end of 2020. After more than a year of development, the latest data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology shows that as of the end of October 2021, the number of virtual private networks in my country's industry exceeded 2,300. At the same time, the release of the "5G Application "Sailing" Action Plan (2021-2023)" has further promoted the success of private networks in enabling 5G business and industry.

With policy support, 5G virtual private networks are taking off

The value and potential of 5G in empowering industry applications have been widely recognized by the industry. As the digitalization process continues to accelerate, both telecom operators and enterprises in traditional industries are increasingly in need of using 5G technology to achieve transformation and upgrading.

In order to promote the development of 5G in more industries, in July this year, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and ten other departments issued the "5G Application "Sailing" Action Plan (2021-2023)". In addition to proposing development indicators for the 5G personal market, the "Plan" requires that by 2023, the 5G application penetration rate of large industrial enterprises will exceed 35%, and 5G applications in the fields of electricity, mining, etc. will be replicated and promoted on a large scale, forming a number of 5G+smart education, 5G+smart medical, and 5G+cultural tourism model projects, and creating more than 100 5G application benchmarks in each key industry.

It is understood that up to now, 5G applications have covered many fields of the primary, secondary and tertiary industries, and the potential of 5G in enabling the digital transformation of the economy and society has been continuously released, with nearly 50% of 5G applications being commercially implemented. Taking the most representative innovative application of the Industrial Internet as an example, it has been widely used in more than 40 key industries of the national economy, such as steel, machinery, transportation, and energy, among which more than 1,800 "5G+Industrial Internet" projects are under construction.

Looking ahead to 2022, Xiao Yaqing, Minister of Industry and Information Technology, said that the construction of 5G and gigabit optical networks will be carried out in a steady and orderly manner, the large-scale construction of 5G industry virtual private networks will be accelerated, and the network infrastructure foundation for digital transformation will be laid. Focus on key industries such as manufacturing, mining, and electricity, and deeply explore typical application scenarios of "5G+Industrial Internet". Support upstream and downstream enterprises in the industrial chain to open data, accelerate the development of basic common standards such as industrial data interaction, and support local areas to explore and cultivate data factor markets. Deeply implement the digital transformation action of the manufacturing industry, accelerate the construction of a digital transformation service system, and promote the entry of industrial Internet platforms into industrial parks and enterprises.

Capability upgrade, continuously evolving product system

On the basis of policy support, the three major domestic operators have been guided by the needs of corporate customers. In the past year's practice, they have continuously improved the product capabilities of 5G industry virtual private networks and carried out systematic upgrades. As Wen Ku, Vice Chairman and Secretary-General of the China Communications Standards Association, pointed out at the IMT-2020 (5G) Conference held in December 2021, the 5G industry virtual private network is currently moving from 1.0 to 2.0, evolving from a ToB general network to a network customized for various industries.

China Telecom has set a goal of implementing 1,000 customized commercial networks in the past year. Through experience summary, it continuously subdivides the needs of users in scenarios and innovatively launches the 5G customized network capability cube. Focusing on business needs, technical parameters, atomic capabilities, standard products, business models, and technical solutions, it achieves accurate scenario adaptation, multi-dimensional capability construction, and fast solution delivery, further realizing the transition from "1" to "N" and promoting 5G scale replication and commercial closed loop. At the same time, it also improves and optimizes the service system and upgrades the industrial ecology.

China Mobile has launched the 5G private network technology system 2.0, which has been upgraded and evolved in three aspects: network capabilities, private network services, and equipment systems. In terms of network capabilities, it has introduced industrial Internet enhancement capabilities such as 5GLAN and TSN, access control capabilities such as NPN and secondary authentication, and business carrying capabilities such as ultra-large uplink, ultra-low latency, ultra-high reliability, and high-precision positioning; in terms of service system improvement, it has built a one-stop operation system, provided operation and maintenance automation, localized operation and maintenance, SLA quality assurance and visualization capabilities, and promoted 5G private networks from "available" to "dare to use" and "easy to use"; in terms of improving the equipment product system, it has independently developed products such as OpenUPF and OpenSigma edge computing platforms, and is planning and developing customized 5GC and "fruit core" integrated equipment. A complete 5G private network equipment product system has been formed for customized deployment scenarios.

China Unicom has released the 5G Industry Private Network Product System 2.0 (i.e. "5G Private Network PLUS"). In terms of network leapfrogging, it has created a three-dimensional network architecture with 5GC centralized in one cloud and distributed in one network, quickly realizing innovation and network access, verification and commercialization, and large-scale promotion throughout the entire network; in terms of industry leapfrogging, it has baselined network solutions and templated network configuration for industry-specific application scenarios, and supported large-scale delivery of 5G private networks; in terms of service leapfrogging, it has adhered to the intensive operation concept of "one-point access, serving the whole country", and comprehensively upgraded the 5G application mall and 5G private network operation platform, so that industry customers can buy with ease, build with peace of mind, and use with confidence.

Ecosystem synergy accelerates 5G integration into various industries

Of course, the 5G industry virtual private network has a long industrial chain from plan to implementation, and "going alone is fast, going together is far" has always been the unchanging law of development in this industry. As the main builders and operators of the current 5G industry virtual private network, telecom operators are actively building an industrial ecosystem.

China Telecom has upgraded its integrated industrial ecosystem, transforming from one-way customer service, simple channel sales, and single supply procurement to co-construction, sharing, and win-win with its partners, creating a larger, broader, deeper, and more fully integrated industrial ecosystem to share the dividends of the industrial digital ecosystem.

China Mobile adheres to the concepts of openness, innovation, cooperation and win-win, and works with upstream and downstream partners in industry, academia, research and application to promote the continuous integration of 5G and the industry, and accelerate the digital transformation of thousands of industries.

China Unicom has comprehensively upgraded its 5G private network platform 3.0. Through open capability standards and edge computing architecture, it has lowered the entry threshold for enterprise applications and built a large-scale ToB business ecosystem, truly achieving full 5G applications, one-stop integration, one-time innovation, and full-network replication.

Liu Yulin, deputy director of the Information and Communications Development Department of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, pointed out that in order to further play the supporting role of 5G industry virtual private networks in industry applications, three suggestions were put forward: first, continue to optimize the promotion environment of 5G industry virtual private networks. Second, accelerate the improvement of 5G industry virtual private network standards. Third, focus on promoting the sharing of 5G industry virtual private network industry resources.

The value of 5G lies in the ToB scenario. The 5G industry virtual private network is the key infrastructure for realizing the implementation of 5G in various vertical industries. At the same time, 5G+ thousands of industries, "cross-border" is necessary and inevitable, and an open "circle of friends" is the key to determining how far it can go. I believe that with the joint efforts of the industrial chain, it will accelerate the transformation of 5G industry applications from "model houses" to "commercial houses".