Samsung explained that SA Option 4 is a dual connectivity technology that connects both 5G and 4G radios to a 5G Core in advanced 5G SA mode
Korean companies Samsung Electronics and SK Telecom (SKT) announced they have successfully completed what they claimed to be the industry’s first 5G-4G Standalone Option 4 (NE-DC, New Radio–E-UTRAN Dual Connectivity) trial in SKT’s 5G SA commercial network.
In a release, the two Korean companies said that SA Option 4 is a dual connectivity technology that connects both 5G and 4G radios to a 5G core in advanced 5G SA mode, enabling operators to increase reliability and maximize their current network resources.
The two companies said that they verified the 5G Option 4 technology at the SKT R&D Center to achieve equal data speed as NSA 5G, using 175 megahertz of bandwidth, and also completed the verification of SA’s specialized functions. For this commercial field trial, SKT used Samsung’s 5G SA core, 5G radios and 4G radios, which are already deployed across SKT’s 5G commercial networks.
The partners described 5G Option 4 is a more advanced option than the existing 5G Standalone mode (SA Option 2) that provides the equivalent level of speed and quality as 5G NSA, while utilizing the specialized functions of the SA Option 2 such as network slicing and the evolved 5G Core network.
SA Option 4 helps operators deliver services including Urban Air Mobility (UAM), automated vehicles, remote control for heavy equipment and remote control robots among others.
“While we supported the launch of the world’s first commercial 5G services in Korea, we are excited to continue spearheading the advancement of 5G through 5G SA technology, which will power innovative 5G services by leveraging the world-class LTE network that is well established in Korea,” said Jong-Kwan Park, vice president and head of the 5GX Technology Group at SKT. “We will continue to expand our collaboration with industry leaders to continue driving this advanced technology and in growing this 5G SA ecosystem, to demonstrate new ways to tap the full potential of next-generation networks.”
“Through this commercial trial, Samsung is proud to collaborate with SKT to achieve another milestone in advancing 5G SA technology, demonstrating the equal performance as NSA with 5G Option 4 technology in 5G SA mode,” said June Moon, EVP and head of technology strategy in the Networks Business at Samsung Electronics.
In March 2021, SKT began delivering 5G SA commercial services to private networks using Samsung’s 5G end-to-end solutions.
SK Telecom ended 2021 with a total of 9.87 million subscribers in the 5G segment, after a net addition of 4.4 million customers during the year, the carrier said in its earnings statement.
In the last quarter of 2021, SK Telecom added 1.22 million 5G subscribers.
The Asian carrier noted that its 5G customer base accounted for 41.6% of total mobile subscribers, up from 36.2% at the end of the previous quarter and 22.8% at the end of 2020.
Nearly 30% of mobile subscriptions in South Korea were on 5G networks at the end of last year, according to a recent report by Korean news agency Yonhap, which cited data from the Ministry of Science and ICT.
The total number of 5G subscribers amounted to 20.92 million as of the end of December last year, accounting for 28.7% of the country’s total 72.86 million mobile subscriptions, according to the ministry.
