The Korean telco said it will initially deploy 5G service on a major expressway
South Korean mobile carrier KT confirmed it will start deploying its 5G network in major parts of PyeongChang this month in a move to accelerate its preparations for the 2018 Winter Olympic Games.
KT signed an agreement with Korea Expressway Corp (KEC) for the deployment of 5G infrastructure on major roads and facilities in PyeongChang.
The telco said it will start installing the equipment at Daegwallyeong Tunnels, which consists of six tunnels along Expressway 50, with a goal to provide services for drivers starting in February of next year.
“Based on the agreement with the KEC, KT will be able to provide more visitors with chances to experience 5G services ahead of their commercialization,” said Kim Young-in, senior vice president of the company’s network division.
KT previously announced plans to test a 5G network during a five-month period before it launches a trial service in early February 2018.
In October 2016, the telco had set up the network for a test run in the Gwanghwamun area in downtown Seoul, and claims to have seen data transmission speeds of up to 2.3 Gbps. KT is collaborating with vendors including ZTE and Ericsson.
China Telecom, Huawei to cooperate on 5G slicing for power projects
In related 5G news, China Telecom Beijing Research Institute, China Electric Power Research Institute, and Huawei said they would cooperate on a joint innovation project about 5G slicing technology for power projects.
Huawei said that slice of ultra-low latency can better meet application requirements, such as automatic power distribution, in the power industry.
“5G slicing provides differentiated capabilities for diverse requirements of innovative industry applications,” said Zhu Xuetian, director of network technology & planning department of China Telecom Beijing Research Institute. “The three-party collaboration project is the first exploration of 5G slicing in power industry applications. 5G slicing is applied to vertical industries, such as the electric power industry, and this will incubate more new applications and business models.”
“Huawei Cloud Core Network started early to invest in R&D of 5G network architecture evolution and slicing technology and has many leading achievements. This project will enable end-to-end technical verification of 5G slicing in smart grid industry applications and accelerate development of sophisticated technologies and solutions,” said Qiu Xuefeng, VP of packet core network, Huawei cloud core network product line.
