5G spectrum competition is "fighting" and deployment is surging

Recently, T-Mobile urged the FCC to complete the licensing process of its 600MHz spectrum as soon as possible so that 5G and LTE services can be deployed on this band as soon as possible. T-Mobile also pointed out that the existing 3.5 GHz architecture is inconsistent with international 5G usage and should be corrected.

In 2016, the FCC opened the 27.5-28.35GHz and 37-40GHz bands for enterprises to conduct 5G tests, and major enterprise operators rushed to test them. Recently, Phazr has confirmed its cooperation with Version and said it plans to use 28GHz and 39GHz as downlinks and 3.5GHz as uplinks. Verizon applied to the FCC for a temporary radio station license (STA) to test Phazr's equipment.

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5G deployment accelerates as spectrum disputes continue

3GPP's decision to speed up the development of 5G NR standards may affect operators' plans and accelerate the deployment of 5G technology.

As 5G deployments near, low-, mid- and high-frequency bands will play a key role in the future health of the mobile wireless industry, according to 5G Americas, a wireless industry association.

The 5G standard has not yet been determined, but the competition for spectrum has already begun. For example, recently the US company Straight Path Communications ("Straight Path") said it had received a new $3.1 billion acquisition offer from an unnamed buyer.

In April this year, AT&T announced that it would acquire Straight Path for $1.6 billion. At the end of April, Verizon's bid for Straight Path reached $1.8 billion. AT&T said that the deadline is next week and it is currently evaluating the situation.

Straight Path may not be well-known, but it holds important spectrum resources. Straight Path owns a series of wireless spectrum rights in the 39 GHz and 28 GHz bands, with the 39 GHz band covering the entire United States.

The acquisition of Straight Path will provide significant support for the construction of 5G wireless networks. After obtaining all of Straight Path's licenses, operators can not only provide faster mobile device services, but also easily provide wireless TV services across the United States.

Operators deploy 5G early

Currently, AT&T and Verizon are both conducting 5G trials. Verizon is testing fixed 5G wireless services with Ericsson in 11 markets in the United States and expects to launch commercial products before 2018. At the same time, AT&T said it has successfully completed a test with Nokia to connect its streaming service DirecTV Now to the 5G network.

Domestic operators are also keeping up with the pace of 5G development. China Mobile said it will rely on the "5G Joint Innovation Center" to promote broader cooperation along the "Belt and Road" and jointly promote 5G development in technology, standards and applications. It is reported that China Mobile was the first in China to release 5G roadmaps, completed key technology verification in 2016, started field testing in 2017, and is expected to conduct large-scale trials in 2018, large-scale pre-commercial use in 2019, and commercial use in 2020.

On May 9, China Unicom Chairman Wang Xiaochu said at the Unicom shareholders meeting that China Unicom has established a 5G laboratory to grasp the cutting-edge 5G technology and keep up with the 5G global standards. However, the 5G frequency band has not yet been fully determined, and the frequency has not yet been approved, so it is impossible to open it for commercial use. It is expected to be widely used in 2020, and partially in some scenarios in 2019.

China Telecom has officially established a 5G open laboratory in September 2016. It is understood that China Telecom's overall plan for 5G deployment is to complete network architecture and key technology research and concept verification from 2016 to 2018, and propose a technical solution for 4G to 5G evolution and carry out laboratory tests and field trials of some key technologies. In 2019, several scale pre-commercial networks will be built, and the goal of 5G commercialization will be achieved in 2020. From 2020 to 2025, in accordance with the CTNet2025 network development goals, the subsequent technical evolution of 5G networks will continue.

Spectrum planning has always been a top priority in the development of 5G. Spectrum planning comes first before troops move. The Global Technology Summit officially released the "Future Spectrum Initiative", which is committed to the unified global spectrum allocation for the future development of the 5G industry, improving the utilization rate of spectrum resources, and recommending smooth evolution from 4G to 5G to achieve hardware equipment reuse through software upgrades.