du, the UAE's second largest operator recently hosted a session on 5G which covered among others the 5G usage cases, 5G standardisation, timelines and 5G milestones. The Operator also showcased how it is spearheading 5G’s deployment in the region during the session.
The '5G: The Next Generation Mobile Network” session at Al Salam Tower in Dubai Media City, was hosted by Marwan Binshakar; Vice President - Access & Transport Planning, and Dr Mahmoud Sherif; Senior Director Mobile Access Network Planning.
In preparation for the 5G future, du claims to be the first telco in the UAE to perform a massive MIMO field trial.
According to du, the mass adoption of 5G in the UAE will completely transform the landscape when it comes to how residents utilise their various connected devices, and further strengthen the Internet of Things (IoT) services in the region.
5G is a phased approach and du will continue with trials until its official launch in 2019. In addition, certain technologies such as “Connected-Cars”, will target cars connected initially through the current 4G network, and the next generation cars of will become connected to the innovative 5G network.
Furthermore, Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality will be one of the main apps of the 5G era. Globally, AR/VR has a huge growth potential with a market value expected to be approximately $110 billion by 2025.
du said 5G will be revolutionary with speeds of 1Gbps and will go up to 5Gbps in phase 1 and then evolve even further in later stages. 5G will accomplish super high speed, low latency communication and massive machine-to-machine type communication in the UAE. The 5G world will be super-connected, with homes, cars and other gadgets all syncing together, added du.
Marwan BinShakar, VP Access & Transport Planning, du
At du, we believe that 5G is the future and it was great to introduce our guests to the next generation of mobile networks. du is leading innovation in the UAE and 5G is going to play an important role in everyone’s lives, whether it be personal or business.
