BROWSING: APAC

China Broadcasting Network launches massive tender for 5G

China Broadcast Network (CBN), China's newest mobile carrier, has launched a tender for the radio access portion of its national 5G network, Chinese press reported. The tender, which seeks the provision of a total of 480,400 5G macro base stations in the 700MHz band, is...

Taiwan to reach 5G penetration of 30% by end-2021: report

Taiwan is expected to reach a 5G penetration rate of nearly 30% by the end of this year, local new site Digitimes reported, citing industry sources. According to the report, Chunghwa Telecom (CHT) currently leads the Taiwanese 5G market, with nearly 1 million subscribers. The...

South Korea ends May with almost 16 million 5G subscribers

South Korea ended May with a total of 15.84 million 5G subscribers, local newspaper Korea Herald reported, citing data from the Ministry of Science and ICT. 5G subscribers at the end of May accounted for 22% of the total 71.45 million mobile subscriptions in the...

South Korea to award additional 5G spectrum in November

South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT has announced it will award 28 GHz and sub-6 GHz spectrum in November to boost the use of 5G-related services across the country, Korean press reported. According to the report, the frequencies will be available for mobile operators...

Global 5G connections to reach 1.8 billion by 2025: GSMA

5G connections globally are forecast to reach 1.8 billion by 2025, according to a new study by the GSMA. The study, "The Mobile Economy 2021", revealed that 5G technology will account for 21% of total mobile connections globally by that year. Developed Asian countries and the...

Telstra reaches 75% of Australia’s population with 5G

Australian operator Telstra said that its current 5G coverage footprint currently reaches 75% of the country’s population. “After starting our initial 5G rollout across major cities, a big effort has been made to extend this out to our suburbs, regional centers and rural areas. You...

NEC Corporation inks O-RAN collaboration with Taiwan’s MTI

Japanese company NEC and Taiwanese company Microelectronics Technology (MTI), a network RF solutions provider, announced a collaboration focused on boosting the Open RAN (O-RAN) ecosystem. The strategic partnership, the two companies said, is intended to provide a broader O-RAN product offering for telecommunications operators and...

Optus, Ericsson deliver NB-IoT, 5G and 4G on 700 MHz spectrum

Australian carrier Optus, in partnership with Ericsson, has carried out a trial in which it delivered coexistence of narrow band IoT (NB-IoT) and Ericsson Spectrum Sharing between 5G and 4G in 700 MHz spectrum. Optus said that this combination of technology will enable 5G services...

South Korea targets 2028 for first ‘6G’ network: Report

South Korea aims to deploy the world’s first commercial "6G" network in 2028, and announced a program to develop the core standards and technologies within the next five years, local newspaper Aju Business Daily reported. The Korean government unveiled a five-year plan to spend some...

NEC, Docomo to jointly develop RIC for advanced operations of O-RAN

Japanese company NEC announced the joint development of RAN Intelligent Controllers (RIC) with compatriot firm NTT Docomo in support of intelligent Radio Access Networks (RAN). The two companies said they are aiming to reduce RAN operational costs, improve performance and reduce power consumption through the...

China Mobile adds 16.65 million 5G subscribers in May

China Mobile, the world’s largest operator in terms of subscribers, added 16.65 million 5G subscribers in May, according to the carrier’s latest available figures. The carrier said it ended last month with 221.95 million 5G subscribers, compared to 55.60 million 5G customers in May 2020. China...

China Tower deploys over 100 5G base stations for Beijing 2022

China telecommunications infrastructure firm China Tower has deployed over 100 5G base stations in 17 competition venues for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing as well as along the Beijing-Zhangjiakou high-speed railway and the Beijing-Chongli expressway, Chinese press reported. According to the report, China Tower...

India to reach 330 million 5G subscribers in 2026: Ericsson

5G subscriptions in India are forecast to reach 330 million in 2026, according to Ericsson’s latest Mobility Report. This technology will account 26% of total mobile subscriptions in the Asian country by that year, the Swedish vendor said. Meanwhile, 4G subscriptions in India are forecast to...

Finnish, Japanese research groups announce alliance to boost ‘6G’ R&D

The Finnish 6G Flagship research program coordinated by the University of Oulu and the Beyond 5G Promotion Consortium of the Japanese Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications have signed an agreement for joint collaboration in the field of as-yet-unstandardized "6G" technologies. The two parties agreed to...

Ericsson, Far EasTone expand 5G partnership in Taiwan

Ericsson and Taiwanese operator Far EasTone (FET) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to expand their 5G partnership, Ericsson said in a release.     As part of the agreement, Ericsson will support the expansion of FET’s 5G Lab to conduct new advanced technology trials and...

South Korea ends April with 15.15 million 5G subscribers

South Korea ended April with a total of 15.15 million 5G subscribers, local news agency Yonhap reported, citing data from the Ministry of Science and ICT. 5G subscribers at the end of April accounted for 21.25% of the total 71.27 million mobile subscriptions in the...

Ericsson shows concerns about future business in China

Ericsson said that the decision by the Post and Telecommunication Authority (PTS) to exclude Chinese vendors’ products from 5G network rollouts in Sweden may negatively impact the company’s business in the Chinese market. In a financial filing, the Swedish company noted that the “ongoing geopolitical...

Singtel launches 5G SA network in Singapore

Singaporean operator Singtel announced the launch of its 5G Standalone (SA) network in the country. The Asian carrier says that 5G SA will enable applications like self-driving cars, real-time immersive entertainment, and massive IoT connections. “We are thrilled to introduce supercharged connectivity on Singapore’s most powerful...

China Mobile claims net addition of 16.5 million 5G subscribers in April

China Mobile, the world’s largest operator in terms of subscribers, added 16.5 million 5G subscribers in April, according to the carrier’s latest available figures. The operator said it ended April with a total of 205.3 million 5G subscribers, compared to 43.74 million 5G customers in...

China ends Q1 with 819,000 5G base stations: report

China ended the first quarter of the year with a total of 819,000 5G base stations, up from 771,000 5G sites at the end of 2020, according to a report published by Chinese paper Global Times. For the full-year 2021, Chinese operators aim to install...

Covid-19 pandemic could delay 5G launch in India: Bharti Airtel

The Covid-19 pandemic would potentially delay the launch of 5G technology in India, Gopal Vittal, CEO of Indian telecommunications company Bharti Airtel said during a press conference. India has been struggling for several months with a national wave of COVID-19 infections that has overwhelmed hospitals...

Rakuten Mobile inks O-RAN agreements with Fujitsu, NEC

Japanese carrier Rakuten Mobile signed two different agreements with compatriot companies Fujitsu and NEC to carry out joint efforts to develop and promote Open RAN solutions for the global market. Rakuten Mobile and Fujitsu said they will collaborate to jointly develop 4G and 5G Open...

Rakuten Mobile’s 4G network reaches 80% of Japan’s population

Japanese mobile operator Rakuten Mobile said its 4G network already reaches 80% of the country’s population, with plans to reach 96% this summer. In a conference call with investors, Rakuten Mobile’s President Yoshihisa Yamada said that the company has already reached limited 5G services in...

Korean carriers add 2.61 million 5G subscribers in Q1

South Korea’s mobile operators added a total of 2.61 million 5G subscribers in the first quarter of the year, according to data from the carrier’s earnings statements. Korean carrier KT added 785,000 5G subscribers in the first quarter. KT had a total of 4.4 million 5G...