The new 5G solution is being tested in Seoul, SK Telecom says
Korean operator SK Telecom has developed a 5G repeater and applied it to its 5G trial network deployed near Gangnam Station in Seoul, Korea. Reps for the telco said that the 5G repeater is designed to improve signals in shadow areas by amplifying 5G radio signals.
The 5G repeater was built with SK Telecom’s independently-developed, pre-standard 5G relay technology and is geared toward resolving the issue of coverage limitations caused by the propagation characteristics of radio signals at frequencies above 6 GHz,the Korean operator said.
The Gangnam area in Seoul is one of the most difficult places to plan and build a network due to the presence of a large number of radio wave obstacles and high-density data traffic. SK Telecom’s deployment of the 5G repeater is key for the firm’s larger 5G strategy as it will allow it to deploy 5G networks in other traffic-concentrated downtown areas.
“SK Telecom is moving closer to launching a commercial 5G network by applying key 5G technologies to our 5G trial network in Gangnam, an area with the highest data traffic,” said Park Jin-hyo, senior vice president and head of network technology R&D center of SK Telecom.
As of March 2017, the company holds around 50% of the Korean mobile telephony market, with 29.83 million mobile subscribers including 21.65 million LTE subscribers.
South Korea aims to complete the deployment of a commercial 5G mobile network in the second half of 2019, Heo Won-seok, director of ICT and broadcasting technology policy at South Korea’s ministry of science, ICT and future planning, previously said during a keynote presentation at the Global 5G Event, taking place this week in Tokyo, Japan.
The official said that the Korean government estimates that 5G technology will have a penetration rate of nearly 5% in the country in 2020, the year in which 5G is expected to be launch in several markets worldwide.
