CV_Winter_21

TheNext G By Bruce Christian T he race to provide 5G continues worldwide among carriers supported by the agent channel. With promises of faster transmis- sion, lower latency and higher capacity, anticipation grows. Although 5G still is not available in many areas worldwide, visionaries already are looking toward the next evolution in wireless cellular technology. 5G Americas, an organization that facilitates and advocates for the advancement and trans- formation of 5G LTE and beyond throughout the Americas, details the work being done globally and presents current use cases and technolo- gies for consideration for the next G. In discuss- ing the inevitability of the next G, the organization points to continued growth and demand for virtual reality and augmented reality uses; additional technologies such as edge computing, cloud services and network virtualization that will require higher demands on networks, the emergence of holographic communications, imaging and sensing, and the evolutions of massive IoT (mIoT), smart agriculture and first responder services. 5G Americas reports that as of last November, 135 5G networks adhering to 3GPP standards were operating globally. The standard is flexible and has accomplished much in defining new radio and service-based architecture. It is expected that 5G will deliver many years of value to consumers and enterprises, but history indicates technology will progress into another International Telecommunica- tion Union-defined standard by or before 2030. This MOBILE & WIRELESS Mobility visionaries already looking to turn the page 14 CHANNEL V ISION | January - February, 2021