Telecom network vendor Ericsson and KT today said they have extended their 5G collaboration to focus on the Internet of Things (IoT).
Both companies have signed a MoU to focus on IoT. Earlier, during the Mobile World Congress 2015, both signed an agreement on 5G.
“We will take the lead in developing 5G technologies in collaboration with KT. We will cooperate with KT to achieve 5G international standardization and the evolution toward 5G communications,” Hans Vestberg said.
5G is expected to be commercially available from 2020. Ericsson claims that it already has live indoor and outdoor 5G test networks in Sweden and the US. KT will start a 5G indoor and outdoor test bed at its R&D center this year in association with Ericsson.
The two companies will jointly develop and verify 5G mobile broadband access technologies in 5G candidate frequency bands and 5G core technologies and systems to provide gigabit-level data speeds and connectivity with ultra-low latency.
KT, a telecom operator in Korea, is preparing to preview the world’s first 5G communications services at the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea.
“Our cooperation with Ericsson will strengthen our strategy to lead 5G and provide seamless connectivity to our consumers,” said Chang-gyu Hwang, CEO of KT.
Previously, Ericsson and KT verified heterogeneous network carrier aggregation technology, a key element of 5G last year. Recently, they demonstrated 5G Multipoint Connectivity with Distributed MIMO with 5G mobile device equipment installed in a moving vehicle.
Multipoint Connectivity with Distributed MIMO with 5G enables the connection of a large number of small cells without interruption, and eliminates possible blind spots in coverage areas. This makes it possible to support gigabit-level wireless services like hologram video communication to moving vehicles.
