New developments in 5G-A!

On June 26th, at the opening ceremony of the 2024 Mobile World Congress Shanghai (MWC Shanghai), Huawei collaborated with 5G-A operators to jointly announce the 5G-A commercial pilot program, driving the development of 5G-A.

Wang Tao, Executive Director of Huawei and Director of the ICT Infrastructure Business Management Committee, said that 5G-A is a deterministic industrial path that can protect existing investments on the one hand and bring new business opportunities and broaden business boundaries on the other.

The three major operators sound the "war drums"

5G-A, also known as 5.5G, stands for 5G-Advanced. As an upgraded version of 5G technology, 5G-A not only boasts faster data transmission speeds and higher network capacity but has also penetrated into production domains by integrating with new technologies such as determinism, high-precision positioning, intelligence, perception, and computing power, expanding into new scenarios such as aerospace integration, connected vehicles, and low-altitude economy.

Public data shows that as of the first quarter of 2024, 5G applications have been integrated into 74 of the 97 major categories of the national economy, covering industries such as industry, healthcare, marine, entertainment, transportation, agriculture, education, and smart cities, with over 94,000 application cases.

On June 18th, the first standard version of 5G-A, 3GPP R18, was frozen. R18 is not only the fourth version of the 5G standard but also the first version targeting 5G-A technology, signaling that 5G technology will enter a new stage of development.

Notably, during the promotion of 5G-A commercialization, the three major operators have already sounded the "war drums." During the conference, senior executives from the three major operators gathered to share new developments in 5G-A and AI+.

Yang Jie, Chairman of China Mobile, said that China Mobile will promote "AI+ emerging technologies" to accelerate the evolution and upgrading of computing power networks, big data, blockchain, and other technologies, continuously stimulating the innovative potential of new-generation information technology.

On June 25th, China Mobile Communications Corporation Shanghai Co., Ltd. officially launched the "Magic Speed Plan" as well as multiple 5G-A commercial packages and applications to meet the diversified needs of different user groups. Shanghai Mobile's latest achievements in 5G-A network construction and application enablement were also showcased.

On May 17th of this year, Shanghai Mobile released 5G-A 4-tier packages, 6 terminals, 7 major AI+ family products, and N types of benefits. The 5G-A commercial packages and applications released this time are optimizations and upgrades of the previous experience packages, providing more network guarantee parameters and enabling differentiated network guarantee capabilities for different scenarios.

According to reports, Shanghai Mobile has built 1,000 5G-A base stations in 2023, and so far, the number of base stations with 5G-A 3CC capabilities has exceeded 4,000, making it the largest network scale globally. In addition, China Mobile is accelerating the commercial deployment process of 5G-A networks nationwide, aiming to build the world's largest 5G-A commercial network.

Ke Rui, Chairman of China Telecom, said that 5G is entering the "second half" where industry integration and application innovation promote the full release of value. On the one hand, AI will reshape network architectures and operating models; on the other hand, the development of AI, especially the widespread application of industry-wide models, will greatly expand 5G application scenarios and drive explosive growth in industry applications.

To accelerate the large-scale deployment of 5G-A, China Telecom has proposed an innovative "Super Series Technology" solution based on carrier aggregation technology, achieving a downlink rate of 5Gbps; it is promoting the development of space-ground integration through direct mobile phone connections and NR NTN application pilots; it is assisting the low-altitude economy to take off with dual capabilities in low-altitude communication and perception, and conducting low-altitude field trials in eight provinces and cities such as Guangdong and Jiangsu.

Chen Zhongyue, Chairman of China Unicom, said that China Unicom is accelerating the promotion of "AI for 5G," carrying out 5G-Advanced and space-ground integration technology innovations, driving intelligent upgrades from network elements, components to topologies, and systems, and building a more agile, efficient, and intelligent ubiquitous intelligent network.

Adhering to the construction concept of giving priority to 5G-A networks, in 2023, Shanghai Unicom took the lead in proposing the "5G-A Network Renewal" initiative, successively completing the deployment of the world's largest T+F multi-carrier aggregation network in key areas such as Jing'an and Yangpu, successfully creating an advanced 5G-A network infrastructure for the future.

Multiple listed companies seize the initiative

From standards to industry chains, from applications to products, from network verification to deployment intentions, the industry is ready for 5G-A commercialization. As 5G-A gains sufficient industry consensus internationally, it is expected that 2024 will usher in large-scale construction and accelerated commercialization.

Since June, several listed companies have announced their 5G-A-related layouts and progress on interactive platforms. Chuling Information said that the company's edge data perception focuses on network and business perception capabilities in 5G-A; Tongyu Communications said that 5G-A technology has been applied to its new generation of communication sensing antennas; Canqin Technology said that the company's ceramic dielectric filters are suitable for 5G-A/5.5G communication networks.

Earlier, several listed companies including Pingzhi Information and Guangmai Technology had already made their first moves.

Pingzhi Information's main businesses are smart home services, 5G communication services, and mobile reading services. As a core supplier of communication operator equipment and content, the company has been conducting business around communication operators for two decades and has now grown into an important partner of communication operators in areas such as smart homes, 5G construction, and digital reading.

In July 2021, Pingzhi Information won the bid for its first large-scale commercial 5G communication equipment project (China Broadcasting Network and China Mobile's 700M 5G network segment), officially launching its 5G communication business. Currently, the company's 5G communication equipment mainly includes 5G base station antennas, 5G small base stations, and OTN equipment.

In recent years, leveraging the advantages of its traditional main business, Pingzhi Information has ventured into the fields of computing power network construction and computing power leasing and entered the AI large model MaaS service, connecting the entire chain of AI from the supply side of infrastructure to the application side, which not only meets customer needs but also provides broad space for the company's future growth in the digital economy.

Guangmai Technology has renamed its "information communication system integration business" as "5G new infrastructure business," making the company's strategic development plan clearer. In March this year, China Mobile globally launched its 5G-A commercial deployment plan, aiming to build the world's largest 5G-A commercial network. Guangmai Technology touches on the operator's entire business chain operations, meeting their comprehensive needs for information communication integrated technical services and marketing services. It has successfully completed communication support services for major events such as the Asian Games and projects related to the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou.

In 2023, Guangmai Technology sold 221 million yuan to China Mobile, accounting for 52.40%, firmly occupying the position of the largest customer; China Unicom and China Telecom are also among the top five customers, selling 45.3 million yuan and 14.91 million yuan, accounting for 10.75% and 3.54%, respectively.