Internet of Things

• [New] The UK Government did have an ambitious target to roll out gigabit-speed broadband to every property in Britain by 2025.
• [New] By the end of the next Senedd term (2021-2026), if the right measures are put in place across governments, potentially - in a best case scenario - we could reach more than 90% of homes and businesses in Wales connected to full fibre broadband.
• [New] Telecom operators will spend 80% of sector capital expenditure amounting to $890 billion on 5G networks over the next five years.
• [New] By 2021 5G's expansive enablement of IoT use cases will drive 70% of G2000 organizations to burn through US$ 1.2 billion on connectivity management solutions.
• [New] Over the coming year, Canadian wireless carriers will continue expanding 5G service to new markets and preparing their networks for when new spectrum arrives.
• [New] Nokia said that its AirScale radio network product portfolio will enable Vodacom to deploy 5G services across several spectrum bands, including the new 3500 MHz, 2600 MHz and 700/800 MHz bands to be auctioned in 2021.
• [New] Chinese telecom carriers are likely to build over 1 million new 5G base stations in 2021, as the cost of 5G base stations is expected to go down in 2021, according to recent Chinese press reports that cited a Chinese telecom expert.
• [New] Mobile operators in Australia have been accelerating 5G deployments in 2020 and are waiting for additional spectrum that local regulator ACMA plans to award in 2021 to further expand 5G networks.
• [New] 5G adoption will reach 16% in the GCC Arab States by 2025 with 15 countries served by 5G networks, slightly ahead of the global average.
• [New] Oreedoo has launched commercial services in Qatar ahead of the planned Fifa World Cup tournament in 2022, having successfully conducted trials using Ericsson NR RAN technology that saw transmission speeds of up to 4.2Gbps in the 200 MHz mid-band spectrum.
• [New] One billion people could have 5G coverage by the end of 2020, so having the multitude of low-cost devices being developed is essential for consumers.
• [New] In the second half of 2021, the Australian government will allocate low-band 5G spectrum (in the 850/900 MHz band), which will be key for broader geographic coverage of 5G services.
• [New] Gartner expects 5G investment to exceed LTE/4G in 2022 and that communications service providers will gradually add standalone capabilities to their non-standalone 5G networks.
• [New] Operators will spend 80% of sector CAPEX $890 billion (€725.98 billion) on 5G networks over the next five years.
• [New] T-Mobile plans to have 2.5 GHz lit up over a population of 100 million by the end of 2020 and 200 million by the end of 2021.
• The talent demand in India's telecom sector is expected to grow by 18-20% in 2021 on account of wide-spread adoption of internet services, demand for better telecom networks, and the rollout of 5G technology.
• By 2021 5G's broad enablement of IoT use cases will drive 70% of G2000 companies to spend US$ 1.2 billion on connectivity management solutions.
• BT plans to retire its PSTN network by the end of 2025, with fixed voice services delivered to customer homes or business premises delivered over broadband connections instead.
• To support the rollout of highspeed internet infrastructure, the German government has set itself a target of having gigabit-capable networks installed nationwide by 2025, and has funnelled broadband funding through the state-backed development bank KfW.
• Ofcom gains the power to block non-compliant services or apps from being viewed in the UK, which we assume will be imposed through mobile operators, app provider and fixed broadband ISPs etc.
• In the last quarter alone, 29 new 5G networks went live, and the total number of networks is expected to grow to 180 worldwide by the end of 2020.
• Global investments in LTE and 5G NR-ready RAN infrastructures operating in unlicensed spectrum will reach nearly $500 Million by the end of 2020.
• In Australia, two 5G spectrum auctions during 2021 will make low, mid, and high bands available for telcos to provide better, faster, and stronger 5G.

Last updated: 10 January 2021