When a customer makes calls, sends texts and uses data, the phone still communicates with the operator's mobile network. (source: AP/TASR)
The mobile operator Orange Slovensko is aiming to launch 5G, or the fifth-generation mobile network, as one of the first operators in Europe between 2020 and 2022.
“The development of 5G is a chance for Slovakia, for citizens and businesses in our country,” said Deputy Prime Minister for Investment and Informatisation Peter Pellegrini, as cited by the TASR newswire. “As one of the prerequisites for development it must be part of our strategy to boost the competitiveness of the whole country.”
Pellegrini expects that the networks will serve a thousand times more devices than the existing networks do today. He promises to talk with his colleagues in the government about the timely preparation of the 5G implementation legislation in order to build the foundations for a successful commercial deployment of the technology in the coming year.
Orange has already clinched strategic partnerships for collaboration in developing 5G with suppliers such as NOKIA and Ericsson. Pavol Lančarič, CEO of Orange Slovensko specified that this is one of the most demanding investment projects in the history of the telecommunications business.
“Only in the case of Slovakia can we talk about an investment exceeding hundreds of millions of euros,” said Lančarič, adding that given the complexity and demanding character of building the infrastructure for 5G, it is necessary for all stakeholders to join forces.
The 5G network requires massive accessibility of optic access networks without which the fully-fledged 5G cannot operate. Another important precondition is availability of a relevant frequency band.
“Orange supports mutual coordination of operators in order that the available frequency spectrum is not devalued by the creation of protection bands by individual operators,” said Lančarič.
The main attributes of the 5G network is high speed, high reliability and ultralow latency. All these mean new opportunities for the industrial automation of processes, autonomous cars, the Internet of Things and more.
