LIVE FROM MWC21 BARCELONA: Ryan Ding, president of carrier business group at Huawei (pictured) argued investment in 5G across early pacesetter markets had already been justified as it becomes the foundation for powering the ICT sector, but added there was still room for more innovation.

Ding pointed to progress of 5G technology in China and South Korea, where Huawei research showed rollout is already 20-times faster than 4G, with subscribers hitting 390 million in its home market.

Between 2021 and 2025, Ding added the combination of ICT and 5G digital infrastructure will drive economic growth of €1.9 trillion in China and €130 billion in South Korea, numbers proving operators’ were becoming drivers for national economies.

With momentum rising, the Huawei executive believes operator business models around the technology should focus on three distinct areas: consumer; home; and business.

On the first, he said 5G may not have a killer app or even develop one, but it could deliver a “killer experience”, and provide consumer benefits across the board.

In business and industry, Ding provided examples of how the technology was boosting efficiency and safety in dangerous sectors including coal mining and steel, allowing workers to operate remotely.

Finally, he pointed to an ongoing evolution of life at home, fuelled by the recent Covid-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, which was increasing demand for 5G fixed wireless access services.

Ding said to continue this progress and gain more value, innovation was key.

“We still need continued 5G innovation, we still need to grow our system, we need to coordinate telecoms standards and integrate 5G into our core production process. 5G innovation is an ongoing process and this is just the beginning.”