China-based vendor ZTE launched a 5G end-to-end (E2E) network slicing product, a development it hailed as a world first which would push forward commercialisation of the new network technology.

The company already laid claim to a number of 5G firsts, and is planning to boost its R&D further with an investment of CNY9.1 billion ($1.5 billion) through the issue of new shares.

In a statement, ZTE said its E2E solution would build a solid foundation for 5G slice-based network operation and provide backing for digital industry transformation. E2E network slicing will allow physical network resources to be split into multiple “virtual slices” and allocated to specific services.

This, the company said, would meet the needs of a range of use cases including industrial control, automatic driving, intelligent power grids and remote healthcare.

ZTE VP You Yan said the innovation was a “key milestone towards the 5G commercialisation” adding: “It not only provides an industrial leading implementation method of network slice, but also turns the network slice into an operational and valuable product for the vertical industry, inaugurating a new mode of the 5G network slice operation.”

The vendor added the innovation was based on “an industry-leading micro-service architecture and realises the convergence of the unified air interface, the virtualised core network and the SDN-based bearer network.”