Page 85 - SAMENA Trends - June-July 2020

ARTICLE SAMENA TRENDS

ARTICLE

Cross-Industry Synergies in the Enablement of 5G

The Middle East has been home to pioneers in
5G commercialization and service innovation
since 2018. That immense power of 5G
connectivity and services are now well and
truly a reality. We believe 5G will be part of the
entire region’s future in the near term as all the

necessary stakeholders, including government,
operators, and industries, have been working
together to nurture 5G commercial applications
and mature industrial chains.

The rollout of 5G networks is progressing rapidly around the world and
bringing new value to communities as well as industries of all sizes. By
the end of May 2020, over 380 operators in 125 countries and territories
had announced they were investing in 5G. In Kuwait, stc announced the
1st nationwide launch of commercial 5G networks in June 2019. Today
there are over 3,000 5G base stations covering over 90% of the population
in Kuwait, and stc will keep enhancing the network capabilities and the
digitization to improve the online sales/delivery efficiency for consumer,
home, and businesses in the country.

Fahad Al Ali As part of that rapid progress, a mature ecosystem is now helping
accelerate 5G commercialization. Consumers may see this as more
Chief Technology Officer affordable 5G smartphones and hundreds of other devices leverage 5G
stc Kuwait connectivity-such as cloud gaming, and AR/VR. On a business front, 5G
is inspiring new industrial models around the world, and we are learning
from those experiences. In places like China, industries from education to
agriculture are being supported by hundreds of 5G-powered applications,
with more under validation every day. Meanwhile in Europe, logistics,
manufacturing, and other domains are swiftly building their own 5G
model. Global telecommunications operators are also capitalizing on a
“3C approach” (Camera + Connection + Cloud) to drive revenue growth,
again underscored by the 5G network.

Regional 5G strategies
The Middle East has been home to pioneers in 5G commercialization and
service innovation since 2018. That immense power of 5G connectivity
and services are now well and truly a reality. We believe 5G will be
part of the entire region’s future in the near term as all the necessary
stakeholders, including government, operators, and industries, have
been working together to nurture 5G commercial applications and

85 JUNE-JULY 2020