TELECOMS

DR PAUL CARTER GWS

When the GWS tested 5G networks across the UK , it found that , in order to achieve a watershed throughput of > 100 Mbps per city , 5G coverage in that city needs to exceed 40 %. At the time of testing , only seven out of the 32 cities the GWS surveyed met that criteria . “ 5G deployment still has some way to go , and of course this is all non-standalone 5G ,” says Carter .

However , progress is still being made . Williamson is still confident that a tipping point is drawing near . “ I think it ’ s less about the health of 5G in the UK and more a question of how the UK as a whole can benefit from 5G ,” he explains . As applications for 5G continue to expand - particularly in the industrial and smart city spheres - more of the benefits will begin to be unlocked , which will compound the speed of adoption in turn .

Williamson does lament Huawei ’ s absence from the UK ’ s 5G rollout , however . “ In short , it will hold the country back from realising its full potential for years to come ,” he says . “ Independent research by Assembly ( analysts ), found that excluding Huawei from the UK ’ s 5G networks would risk severely delaying operators ’ 5G rollout plans , adversely affecting the UK economy by £ 18.2bn , and losing the

UK ’ s current competitive advantage in 5G leadership .” Huawei , which the UK Government has classified as a “ high-risk ” vendor , was banned from selling equipment to UK carriers late last year , with the threat of hefty fines hanging over the heads of operators who didn ’ t switch to Nokia , Ericsson or OpenRAN components for their networks quickly - with a final eviction date set for 2027 .

The US : Fast and too-focused ? Unlike UK operators , the US ’ carriers gained access to low and high-band 5G spectrum early on in the 5G race - with mid-band 5G only just becoming available ; Verizon ,

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