THE ROAD TO 5G NETWORKS EXPERIENCE TO DATE AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS OECD DIGITAL ECONOMY PAPERS July 2019 No. 284 2 THE ROAD TO 5G NETWORKS: EXPERIENCE TO DATE AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS Foreword This report on “The Road to 5G Networks” was prepared by the Working Party on Communication Infrastructure and Services Policy (WPCISP). It provides an overview of 5G developments, an initial discussion of the implications for communication infrastructure and considers some future regulatory issues. The report focuses on countries’ experiences concerning “5G National Strategies” as well as current technological trials. This paper was approved and declassified by written procedure by the Committee on Digital Economy Policy on 3 May 2019 and was prepared for publication by the OECD Secretariat. This report was drafted by Alexia Gonzalez Fanfalone with contributions by Sam Paltridge from the OECD Secretariat and WPCISP delegates regarding their country experiences. It was prepared under the supervision of Sam Paltridge and Verena Weber. This publication is a contribution to the OECD Going Digital project, which aims to provide policymakers with the tools they need to help their economies and societies prosper in an increasingly digital and data-driven world. For more information, visit www.oecd.org/going-digital. #GoingDigital Note to Delegations: This document is also available on O.N.E. under the reference code: DSTI/CDEP/CISP(2018)3/FINAL This document, as well as any data and any map included herein, are without prejudice to the status of or sovereignty over any territory, to the delimitation of international frontiers and boundaries and to the name of any territory, city or area. The statistical data for Israel are supplied by and under the responsibility of the relevant Israeli authorities. The use of such data by the OECD is without prejudice to the status of the Golan Heights, East Jerusalem and Israeli settlements in the West Bank under the terms of international law. © OECD 2019 You can copy, download or print OECD content for your own use, and you can include excerpts from OECD publications, databases and multimedia products in your own documents, presentations, blogs, websites and teaching materials, provided that suitable acknowledgement of OECD as source and copyright owner is given. All requests for commercial use and translation rights should be submitted to [email protected] OECD DIGITAL ECONOMY POLICY PAPERS THE ROAD TO 5G NETWORKS: EXPERIENCE TO DATE AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS 3 Table of contents Foreword ................................................................................................................................................ 2 Executive Summary .............................................................................................................................. 5 The Road to 5G Networks: Experience to date and future developments ....................................... 8 1. Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 8 2. The promise of 5G ........................................................................................................................... 10 2.1. The technological promise of 5G ................................................................................................ 10 2.2. The potential benefits: the economic promise of 5G .................................................................. 12 3. The Enablers of 5G .......................................................................................................................... 22 3.1. Spectrum for 5G .......................................................................................................................... 22 3.2. Technological advances and network performance improvements ............................................ 26 3.3. Network Slicing: a key feature of 5G bringing new possibilities ............................................... 28 3.4. Developments of 5G New Radio: the emergence of a standards ecosystem .............................. 31 3.5. Access to backhaul and investment in NGA networks: key enabler of 5G ................................ 32 4. The 5G challenge: implications to infrastructure ......................................................................... 34 4.1. Implications of network “densification” ..................................................................................... 34 4.2. The investment challenge ........................................................................................................... 39 5. Trials and 5G strategies in different countries and regions ........................................................ 41 5.1. Australia ...................................................................................................................................... 42 5.2. Austria ......................................................................................................................................... 43 5.3. Brazil ........................................................................................................................................... 44 5.4. Canada ........................................................................................................................................ 44 5.5. China ........................................................................................................................................... 45 5.6. European Union .......................................................................................................................... 45 5.7. France.......................................................................................................................................... 46 5.8. Germany...................................................................................................................................... 48 5.9. Hungary ...................................................................................................................................... 49 5.10. Italy ........................................................................................................................................... 49 5.11. Japan ......................................................................................................................................... 53 5.12. Korea ......................................................................................................................................... 54 5.13. Singapore .................................................................................................................................. 57 5.14. Spain ......................................................................................................................................... 57 5.15. Sweden ...................................................................................................................................... 58 5.16. Switzerland ............................................................................................................................... 59 5.17. United Kingdom ....................................................................................................................... 59 5.18. United States ............................................................................................................................. 62 6. Concluding remarks ........................................................................................................................ 64 Annex A. Sources of Country 5G auctions and trials ...................................................................... 65 End Notes ............................................................................................................................................. 67 References ............................................................................................................................................ 71 OECD DIGITAL ECONOMY POLICY PAPERS 4 THE ROAD TO 5G NETWORKS: EXPERIENCE TO DATE AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS Tables Table 1. Minimum technological features of IMT-2020 ....................................................................... 11 Table 2. Spectrum bands being made available for 5G in OECD countries ......................................... 26 Table 3. 5G Trials in different Countries .............................................................................................. 41 Table 4. Coverage obligations and timeline of the 700 MHz FDD band .............................................. 51 Figures Figure 1. Mobile data usage per mobile broadband subscription, 2017 ................................................ 18 Figure 2. Total data per mobile broadband user (smartphone) per month (GB), 2016 ......................... 19 Figure 3. The evolution of competition* between services (fixed and mobile) across wireless network generations ...................................................................................................................... 20 Figure 4. Percentage of fibre connections in total fixed broadband, June 2018 .................................... 33 Figure 5. New transmission sites for 5G ............................................................................................... 35 Figure 6. Korea’s 5G roadmap .............................................................................................................. 55 Figure 7. Korea’s