3 Obstacles 5G Could Overcome

August 02, 2017 at 10:32 AM
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Widespread transition from 4G wireless technology to 5G will have implications for more than just the telecommunications sector, according to an analysis by asset management firm Harding Loevner.

Harding Loevner believes 5G will be "more consequential than previous transitions" and identified three potential milestones that could be passed with 5G.

First is simply the much higher internet speeds and the impact on consumers and businesses. With 5G, wireless internet speed could surpass that of cable broadband and even fiber optic cable, according to Harding Loevner. Streaming services and video will be faster and easier on 5G, something advisors should consider in their video marketing schemes.

But beyond the impact on consumers who no longer have to wait for a video to load, 5G could facilitate much wider adoption of the Internet of Things. IoT has implications for industrial agriculture, supply-chain coordination, fleet management and city traffic flow, according to Harding Loevner.

"Importantly, 5G will provide the necessary bandwidth for connected vehicles to send and receive the huge amounts of data at the speed required for effective vehicle coordination, thereby representing a vital component in the development of autonomous driving," the asset manager wrote.

Finally, Harding Loevner predicts that network latency could drop to one millisecond with 5G, compared with between 20 and 50 milliseconds on a 4G LTE network. "The perception of immediate response, especially when combined with haptic, or touch-based, feedback, will enable new wireless applications such as remote surgeries and remote driving," according to the company.

Virtual reality and gaming experiences could be improved, as could, no doubt, virtual meetings with clients.

Some limitations will slow widespread adoption of 5G to the early or mid-2020s, Harding Loevner believes. Different countries will adopt the technology at different rates, and will regulate use cases in different ways.

"Nonetheless, the broad range of new economic opportunities — and threats — posed by 5G will significantly impact not only telecommunications, but other areas such as health care, consumer and industrial products, energy, and utilities."

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