Page 86 - SAMENA Trends - June-July 2020

ARTICLE SAMENA TRENDS

mature industrial chains. This is helping ideally start in what is called the 100MHz are increasingly competitive in the whole
to push the whole 5G industry forward in bandwidth, with additional spectrum bands region as well as in Kuwait, but speed-
a steady and sustainable way, and has considered so that there is a seamless based and experience-based packages still
encouraged the gathering of operators, transition between today’s networks have good space to improve. We believe
vendors, and vertical industry partners to and future 5G networks. We have great that wireless, speed-based packages
jointly explore 5G use cases from around confidence that this allocation can be done in particular will be key to providing the
the world. Today more than 70 partners smoothly and will bring the benefits of 5G stable experiences people expect, and will
are actively working to bring diverse 5G to more people and businesses over the also have a much shorter time-to-market
services into the Middle East through that next 12 months. compared to fiber.
program, while promoting closed-loop
business models between operators and Enabling future digital transformation Services tailored for businesses are
partners. Knowing that there is great momentum also incredibly important in the 5G era.
for 5G both globally and in the Middle East Back in August 2019, stc launched the
As a leader in enabling the today, I am often asked about what the world’s first speed-based 5G Data Access
commercial service, which aimed at
future holds for Kuwait specifically, and
digital transformation of what will be stc’s role in that future. creating high-quality broadband access to
Kuwait, we are constantly As a leader in enabling the digital local enterprises. Currently more than 150
are
of
Kuwait,
transformation
we
businesses are using stc’s 5G data access
exploring new services constantly exploring new services and solution, which features low costs and fast
and platforms that platforms that can bring value to the time-to-market compared to microwave
can bring value to the society. We are proud that Kuwait was offerings. 5G “Dedicated Access” through
SA is covering SME’s requirements during
among the pioneers of countries in the
society. We are proud that commercialization 5G network in the this pandemic period and supporting
Kuwait was among the Middle East. stc has led 5G network top banks’ mobile data access, such as
the mobile ATM branch. Thanks to 5G
development and commercialization in
pioneers of countries in Kuwait with over 1,750 5G sites, 300Mbps “Dedicated Access”, users can now directly
the commercialization 5G average service speed, 180,000 TDD users talk to an NBK Agent using audio and video
network in the Middle East. and 20,000 5G users, and over 170TB of 5G conferencing to conduct transactions like
traffic by May 2020.
issuing a debit card, depositing or cashing
a check, and more.
Approximately one year on from the For consumers, stc is the market leader
first 5G networks being unveiled in the in MIFI package, which is designed to In the oil and gas sector, the traditional
Middle East, we now have a breadth of bring 5G Giga experience to customers, solutions such a SCADA data transfer
use cases at our fingertips. These include and 5G indoor coverage already started used in the exploration, drilling, production
the success of Fixed Wireless Access for in top malls. Now stc’s 5G network is and refinery of oil and gas, are now being
home, 5G private lines for businesses, being optimized for the 5G smartphone replaced with 5G-based applications such
and smart campus enablement networks. boom, which is expected to accelerate in as CCTV monitoring, drone inspection, AR
Many others are being explored such as Q3 of this year. The target is to provide assistants, and so on. With data security of
gaming, VR/AR, autonomous vehicles, and continuous and seamless 5G coverage in particular importance, 5G MEC support is
so on. In particular, the combination of a network that will be heavily dominated now a key mandatory requirement for that
5G and AI solutions is proving incredibly by 5G mobile users. Indoor 5G coverage in industry.
beneficial to the region. We have seen top malls has already become a reality, for
this in 2020 in the context of COVID-19 example.. In areas like gaming, stc is also In short, we feel well prepared to lead 5G
as smarter, 5G-enabled technologies currently talking to TENCENT on ways to network development in Kuwait and the
such as zero-touch 5G + AI temperature collaborate, and how to guarantee the best wider Middle East. stc was among the first
detection, remote collaboration systems, 5G network experience for popular games operators in the MENA region to launch
and more are helping in the fight against such as PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds a 5G standalone network, and we will
the pandemic. (a.k.a. PUBG) in Kuwait. keep improving our services and delivery
efficiencies, implement network slicing
While we have clearly built momentum, For homes, a speed-based 5G fixed strategies, all while extending network
accelerating 5G development across the wireless solution now empowers homes capabilities to end-users in consumer,
region still requires a concerted effort with Giga-level internet connections. This home, and business scenarios. This will
by governments and policymakers to is being complemented with the mesh Wi- ultimately be centered on product and
release appropriate and affordable mobile Fi solution in order to provide seamless solution innovations to enhance the user
spectrum. As per industry experts and and continuous Giga-throughput coverage experience.
proven experiences in other parts of at homes, especially in larger and 2-3
the world, the spectrum for 5G should level homes. Volume-based packages

86 JUNE-JULY 2020