Super-fast cellular network Europe is lagging behind in terms of 5G expansion

Status: 16.06.2021 11:11 a.m.

The expansion of the new generation of mobile communications is progressing. Half a billion people worldwide could use 5G this year. According to a study, there are mainly networks in Asia and North America ahead. In the race to expand the fifth generation of mobile communications (5G), Western Europe is in danger of being overtaken by North America, Northeast Asia and the Gulf States on the Arabian Peninsula. That is the result of a study by the Swedish network equipment manufacturer Ericsson. According to this, nine percent of all mobile phone contracts in Northeast Asia (including China and South Korea) had already been converted to 5G by the end of 2020. In Western Europe this value was only one percent. Globally, it is expected that 580 million people will already be using 5G networks by the end of 2021. Because of the corona pandemic, some frequency auctions in Europe have been postponed, Ericsson said in his “Mobility Report”. This has a short-term impact on the provision and coverage of 5G in the region.

06/08/2021

Early expansion in the Gulf States

Nevertheless, 4G technology will also be pushed back in Western Europe in the coming years, in favor of 5G. While 4G (LTE) is currently the dominant access technology and accounts for 78 percent of all contracts, Ericsson is forecasting a decline to 27 percent by the end of 2026. The 5G penetration will then reach around 69 percent. Older standards such as UMTS (3G) disappear almost completely . This would mean that 5G penetration in Western Europe would be lower than in North America, where it is forecast that by 2026 almost 84 percent of all mobile phone contracts could be based on the 5G standard. A share of 73 percent is expected in the Gulf States. In 2019, these countries were among the first in the world to introduce commercial 5G services. In Northeast Asia, on the other hand, only two thirds (65 percent) of all mobile phone contracts are expected to switch to 5G by 2026. In absolute numbers, Asia is forecast to have the largest number of 5G contracts (1.4 billion). The study expects 340 million 5G contracts for North America. In other regions of the world, including India and Latin America, current 4G technology will remain dominant in 2026. Overall, Ericsson expects the number of 5G cellular connections to grow to 3.5 billion by 2026 – almost 500 million of them in Europe.

background December 27, 2020

More wireless landline connections

5G technology is carried by smartphones, which already make up the majority of mobile data traffic. According to Ericsson, a good half – 53 percent – of mobile data traffic should run over 5G networks by 2026. The Swedish network equipment supplier also predicts that the number of wireless fixed network connections (FWA) will reach almost 180 million by the end of 2026. Up to this point in time, mobile communications will account for around 20 percent of global mobile network data traffic for your own four walls. The wireless fixed network connections via 4G or 5G compete with classic broadband connections such as DSL, cable internet or fiber optic connections. They are especially cheaper to provide on the “last mile” because you do not have to lay cables from the distribution box into the apartments or offices.

“The health and safety of our employees, partners and customers is our number one priority, so Samsung has decided not to participate in the live display at Mobile World Congress this year,” a company representative said. . MWC 2021 has been delayed by 4 months compared to the annual practice. Photo: PCMag. Samsung is not the first big name in the mobile industry to confirm not to participate in MWC 2021. Previously, Sony, Nokia and Ericsson have announced similar plans. Google also didn’t bring any new products to this event, but it’s still present. “We understand that event planning during the pandemic is complicated. Samsung will appear online at MWC 2021. We hope to see them again at next year’s event,” the spokesperson said. of the Global Mobile Association (GSMA) – the organizer of MWC – feedback on Engadget . On May 6, GSMA released a press release, introducing details of the MWC 2021 event program. The theme of this year’s exhibition is: Connected Impact with content revolving around AI, 5G, Big Data and IoT shaping the future, changing lives. GSMA intends to invite more than 600 keynote speakers for this event, including big names in the global technology industry such as leaders of carriers, technology firms, investment funds. The withdrawal of Samsung – the brand that holds the largest share of the global mobile market – puts MWC at risk of a similar cancellation last year. Two weeks before the event, the organizers of MWC 2020 announced the cancellation of the exhibition because many major brands did not attend, including Samsung, Sony and LG. This year, instead of being held at the end of February and early March as usual, GSMA decided to postpone the MWC 2021 exhibition to the end of June. Quick review of Galaxy S21 and S21 Ultra Galaxy S21 owns a compact design, youthful colors. Meanwhile, Galaxy S21 Ultra is aimed at users who love to experience Samsung’s latest technologies.

China again threatens to ‘handle’ Ericsson if Sweden bans Huawei. According to the Global Times, affiliated to the People’s Daily of the Communist Party of China, whether Ericsson has a chance to participate in the next round of China’s massive 5G network construction plan has nothing to do with whether whether or not Stockholm will change its stance on Huawei. Previously, in October 2020, the Postal and Telecommunications Administration of Sweden (PTS) announced a ban on the use of equipment from Huawei and ZTE in the development of 5G networks in the country. This ban did not surprise observers because Sweden has repeatedly bluntly called China a threat to national security. According to the Global Times, Huawei has appealed the decision in a Swedish court and a ruling is expected in the coming weeks. In the event that the appeal is unsuccessful, China will close the door to Ericsson from supplying goods to China. Representatives for Ericsson and the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Trade declined to comment. Meanwhile, shares of Ericsson fell nearly 4% on May 11. After Swedish regulators banned Huawei in October last year, Chinese officials and state media outlets judged the decision unfair, saying Huawei poses no security risk. and Sweden is trying to protect the domestic telecommunications company Ericsson. They threatened to retaliate against Swedish companies doing business in China, including Ericsson and its largest shareholder, Investor AB, the investment company of the highly influential Wallenberg family in Sweden, which has shares mostly at a few large European companies. Earlier, Chinese media outlets reported that the country’s Ministry of Commerce was said to be considering export control measures to prevent Ericsson from sending products and components made in China abroad. The prospect of retaliation prompted Ericsson CEO Börje Ekholm to launch a lobbying campaign on Huawei’s behalf. He criticized Swedish politicians and solicited lawyers to help Huawei fight the Swedish ban. He said Ericsson gets only 1% of its revenue from Sweden while China is Ericsson’s second-biggest market after the US, contributing 8% of the company’s revenue. Currently, Ericsson is providing equipment and terminal services to China’s state-owned carriers including China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom, serving more than 350 million 5G mobile subscribers in China in total. CEO Ekholm even stated: “If the ban on Huawei remains, Ericsson will leave Sweden.”

Ericsson headquarters in Sweden. Photo: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson Chris Houghton, senior vice president of Ericsson and for markets in Northeast Asia, told reporters through a video call at an event in Beijing on April 22: “Confrontation and increasing polarization Increasing will not make the world any safer. ” Global efforts to improve telecommunications technology have been supported by hundreds of companies over the years, adding that the role of “Chinese innovators cannot be ignored,” said Houghton. “. “Anything that restricts competition runs the risk of slowing down the industry,” he said. Market performance should be determined by the technical practices of the competitiveness of the different solutions. ” Ericsson has been campaigning for months against the Swedish government’s ban on Huawei. Earlier this week, in an interview with Chinese media outlet Caixin at the Boao Forum for Asia, President and CEO Ericsson Börje Ekholm said “geopolitics could endanger” cooperation. of the company with its Chinese counterparts, such as Huawei and ZTE, in setting unified global standards in the telecom industry. Ericsson is also concerned about the impact of the Sweden ban on Huawei equipment on its business in China. The company said in its 2020 financial report that Sweden’s sanctions against Huawei risk having an impact on its operations in the world’s second-largest economy. Last year, China was Ericsson’s second largest market after the US, contributing 8% of the company’s revenue – up from 7% in 2019. The company provides equipment and terminal services to national carriers. China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom, respectively, serve more than 350 million 5G mobile subscribers in China. According to data from China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, China placed 5G at the top of its agenda to boost the digital economy, which houses 792,000 5G base stations by the end of February, making them the largest 5G network in the world. On April 22, Ericsson Vice President Sinisa Krajnovic, head of the company’s digital services division in Northeast Asia, said that there is still uncertainty about whether the company can fall victim to the stress. geopolitics or not. “When it comes to China, there are things we can control and things we cannot control,” said Mr. Krajnovic. He pointed out that countries like China, which invest early in 5G technology, are more likely to capture “competitive advantage” than latecomers. The administrative court in Stockholm on April 21 began hearing Huawei’s argument as to whether the Swedish authorities’ restrictions were legal. The Swedish Post and Telecommunication Authority decided in October last year to ban the world’s largest telecom equipment maker from supplying the country’s mobile network operators during its 5G rollout. them, on the grounds of security risk. The regulator also issued a similar ban on ZTE.