Canada
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July 1, 2020 – Although COVID-19 has not entirely disrupted U.S. network roll-outs, questions remain about how fast Canadian and European networks can now expand. 5G spectrum auctions have been set back in Canada and the European Union due to the coronavirus pandemic. Canada's 5G auction was slated for December but will be postponed until next summer, while Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains has said this would enable "the telecom industry to maintain its focus on providing essential services to Canadians."
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June 25, 2020 – Following Rogers’ launch of a 5G network last January, TELUS deployed its 5G network on June 18, noting it will not charge an extra fee for 5G services next year. On June 11, Bell deployed its own network in Montreal, Toronto, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver. The network is accessible by 5G phones including Samsung's Galaxy S20 series. Bell later announced that it no longer plans to apply 5G charges, stating “access is now included at no additional charge for customers with 5G-capable devices.”
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June 19, 2020 – The University of Calgary has announced a five-year collaboration with Rogers Communications on IoT research. They jointly established the Rogers Internet of Things Chair, led by Dr. Steven Liang, who will focus on researching energy, smart cities, transportation and workplace safety – including COVID-19 solutions. Western University, meanwhile, has partnered with Bell Canada on an advanced 5G research centre. Bell will invest $2.7M to deploy network equipment across Western’s campus. The partnership will also fund 5G training and R&D initiatives.
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Global 5G
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July 3, 2020 – According research firm Omdia, 5G subscriptions quadrupled in the first quarter of 2020, reaching 63.7 million (or 0.7% of the global market). Omdia predicts LTE will reach its peak market share at the end of 2021 (at 62%) and its peak subscriber count at the end of 2022 (6.1 billion subscribers). From 2023, the LTE market will decline as consumers migrate to 5G. By the end of 2024, Omdia expects 5G to make up nearly a quarter of the global mobile market (at 2.5 billion subscriptions), while LTE will continue to claim 55.5% of all mobile subscriptions.
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June 24, 2020 – A new statement from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and the Committee on Man and Radiation (COMAR) addresses growing misinformation about 5G safety. “This misinformation, along with activist websites expressing even more dire consequences of 5G, has created a substantial and unnecessary public anxiety,” said UC Davis’ Jerrold Bushberg, who is vice president of COMAR. “Within current exposure limits, there appears to be little or no risk of adverse health effects related to radiofrequency exposure from 5G systems,” concludes COMAR's evidence-based review published in Health Physics journal.
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June 8, 2020 – In a Washington Post editorial, FCC general counsel Thomas Johnson Jr. wrote that 5G conspiracy theories threaten the U.S. recovery. Such theories "exacerbate suffering during the COVID-19 crisis, because the dislocation caused by the pandemic requires strong internet connectivity to facilitate telework, remote learning, as well as staying in touch with friends and family,” Johnson said. He added that misunderstanding of 5G technology by local government is a key barrier to wireless deployment. “While federal law places limits on the abilities of towns and cities to prohibit wireless deployment, these localities can play an active role in either speeding or delaying the roll-out of services.”
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June 30, 2020 – Upgrading the UK's infrastructure to 5G could generate £158 billion for the economy, according to a new report from WPI Economics. The report, commissioned by Vodafone UK, suggests 5G will offer a financial boost to the UK as it recovers from COVID-19. Investments in infrastructure will create new jobs and business opportunities, as well as improve the provision of services. From 2020-2025, cumulative benefits from 5G will exceed £38 billion, while they exceed £120 billion between 2025-2030. The report also recommends the UK unlock 5G’s full potential by ensuring that favourable policy, procurement and investment conditions exist to support faster roll-outs nationwide.
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June 25, 2020 – The Ford Motor Company plans to introduce a private 5G network in the UK to speed up its electric vehicle manufacturing. The 5G mobile network will be installed at Ford's electric vehicle battery workshop in Essex later this year. It will replace an existing Wi-Fi network in order to remedy wireless connectivity issues in the industrial setting. A trial of the network was sponsored by the UK government, which contributed £2 million as part of its £65 million strategy for promoting investment and innovation in 5G.
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June 12, 2020 – Although wireless internet service providers have long offered fixed wireless broadband in rural areas, fixed wireless is experiencing a revival in some urban markets due to the introduction of 5G Home from Verizon and newcomer Starry’s fixed wireless service. 5G Home is slotted to reach 10 U.S. urban markets by the end of 2020 – with a self-stall option making it less costly to deploy. Like Verizon, Starry’s own fixed wireless service uses millimetre wave spectrum, but focuses on delivering 200 Mbps connectivity to apartments and multi-dwelling units in Boston, LA, New York, Denver and Washington, D.C.
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