LIVE FROM GSMA M360 APAC, SEOUL: Ericsson CTO for Asia Pacific Magnus Ewerbring (pictured) insisted the knowledge gained in deploying a second wave of 5G networks will better prepare the industry for the move into 6G at the end of the decade.

Speaking in a session dedicated to 6G, Ewerbring highlighted it is still early days in the deployment of 5G technology, despite uptake of the technology being the fastest in the mobile industry to-date.

Total 5G penetration is below 15 per cent and coverage less than 35 per cent, with two-thirds of the world still to be covered, he added.

Ewerbring noted most operators have not deployed standalone 5G commercially, which means network slicing is not available.

Carrier aggregation still needs to be introduced in most markets, he said, citing early 5G adopter South Korea as an example because it is only using 3.5GHz.

“There’s a lot to do and as we do that we will monetise 5G.”

Ewerbring added the experience the industry picks up in the coming years will help it “excel in to 6G”, as it derives insight into how to design and build networks.