October 23 2014

3GPP’s official contribution to 5G may be a long way off, but there is already a massive amount of industry effort being exerted on the identification of what it will be. The latest thinking has this week been published by 4G Americas, in their “5G: A New Frontier for Mobile Broadband Innovation” white paper.

The document increases the reader’s understanding of what 5G will be, in chapters dealing with Market Drivers and Use Cases for 5G, Requirements for 5G, Regulatory Considerations, Potential Technologies for 5G and Spectrum.

The paper’s conclusion recommends the following:

1.  As 5G is defined and requirements are being developed, it must include the entire 5G ecosystem (e.g., air interface, devices, transport and packet core).

 

 

2.  5G development should provide global harmonization under a single framework and allow time for true advances of technology, feasibility studies, standardization and product development.

 

 

3.  It is critical that the countries of the Americas invest in 5G research.

 

4.  Avoid debate (at least initially) on what 5G is. 5G does not (yet) describe any particular specification in any official document published by any standardization body.

 

5.  5G planning should consider all major technology advances on the road to 5G.

 

6.  Wherever feasible, features being discussed as 5G requirements should be implemented as LTE-Advanced extensions, before the full 5G is available. There are ongoing enhancements in LTE-Advanced that will continue through 2018. 5G is envisioned to have initial deployments around 2020. It must be recognized that significant breakthroughs in new radio transmission interfaces may be accompanied by a break in backward compatibility. 

Chris Pearson, President of 4G Americas, is quoted in the press release for the launch of this white paper, saying; “5G networks will not be standardized, manufactured or deployed in a days’ notice for tomorrow; however, the long term planning cycle is upon the mobile broadband industry, and it is imperative that the Americas region be represented. This 4G Americas white paper provides a vision of 5G that can be utilized throughout the world.”

The paper can be downloaded from the 4G Americas web site: www.4gamericas.org

About 4G Americas:

4G Americas is an industry trade organization composed of leading telecommunications service providers and manufacturers. The organization's mission is to advocate for and foster the advancement and full capabilities of the 3GPP family of mobile broadband technologies, including LTE-Advanced, throughout the ecosystem's networks, services, applications and wirelessly connected devices in the Americas. 4G Americas contributes to the success of 3GPP technologies and their No. 1 place in the region. 4G Americas is headquartered in Bellevue, Wash. More information is available at www.4gamericas.org or www.facebook.com/4gamericas  and www.twitter.com/4gamericas .