Nigeria to Auction 5G Spectrum December 13 2021 The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has finally officially declared the date on which it will auction the 3.5Ghz spectrum for the deployment of 5G technology in the West African country. Currently, the auction is expected to be held on 13 December 2021 and, according to the Information Memorandum (IM), seen by TechNext, presented by the NCC at a stakeholders engagement forum held in Lagos recently, the reserved price for the spectrum has been started at $197.4-million.
At the auction, bidders can win a 10-year 5G spectrum license but must have an operational Universal Access Service License (UASL) as a minimum requirement for bidding. New entrants or licensees without a UASL will be required to obtain one to qualify for the 5G license.The NCC said via the IM that only licensees who make down payments of 10% of the reserved bid price and with 100% regulatory compliance will be allowed to participate in the auction. Licensees with outstanding debts will also be allowed to participate, provided they secure the NCC’s approval for a payment plan.Within the 10-year span of the license, eventual licensees will be given a rollout obligation plan beginning from the date of award of the license. Operators will be expected to roll out 5G services in at least one state in Nigeria between the first and second year of the license.The rollout plan obligates operators to cover all geo-political zones in the country from the third to fifth year. Between six to 10 years, operators are expected to cover all states in the country with 5G technology.
While contemporaries like Kenya and South Africa already enjoy the super-fast internet speed and connectivity provided by 5G in some areas, Nigeria has lagged due to regulations and a bloated spectrum auctioning approval process. In July 2021, Nigerians were still waiting on the Federal Government to approve the technology’s deployment even as the NCC claimed it was ready for the rollout.Approval finally came in September, but now Nigerian users will have to wait until the spectrum auction is held and completed with the government expecting to roll out 5G in January next year once respective operators have licenses.
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has announced that the country is now ready for the rollout of 5G services across the nation. This was made known by the Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) Prof. Umar Danbatta. The NCC’s green light for 5G rollout according to Prof. Danbatta is part of the fulfillment of its commitment to “put Nigeria on the frontline as a technology-driven economy.”
Danbatta said that the Commission had finally completed its preparations – “crossed all the Ts and dotted all the Is” – and is currently awaiting approval from the Federal Government to begin rolling out 5G services.
Executive Vice Chairman (EVC)/Chief Executive of NCC, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta
The announcement was made during a public inquiry on the draft frequency spectrum (fees and pricing, and annual operating levy regulations) held in Abuja during the week.
Justifications for the NCC’s decision to begin rollout plans across the country were solidified after a series of pre-trial 5G rollout exercises conducted by Airtel and MTN Nigeria. Danbatta further explained that the Commission is now ready for the rollout and had already submitted a proposal to the Federal Government for approval.
Danbatta also said that, since the three frequency bands required for 5G coverage had already been assigned for deployment, Nigeria could no longer afford to be left behind by other nations who had already begun their 5G rollout and demand for emerging technologies across the globe.
After two 5G trials conducted by MTN and Ericsson in 2019, with the supervision of the NCC, Nigeria’s Upper Legislative Chamber, the Senate, approved the deployment of 5G networks in the country.
The Senate had agreed that the technological impact that was promised with 5G would “revolutionise Nigerians’ ways of life”, with expected positive changes from education to agriculture, security to entertainment, and governance in general if the technology is deployed.
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
As some of the controversies trailing the emergence and deployment of the 5G technology dies a slow death, experts have highlighted that it will be the most transformative communications technology in a generation and will enable a universe of new services, including advanced energy management capabilities that will be critical to solving growing energy and sustainability challenges. But new research highlights the practical challenges of 5G energy management facing telecommunications operators.
5G Network
Estimates suggest 5G networks can be up to 90% more efficient per traffic unit than their 4G predecessors, but they still require far more energy due to increased network density, heavy reliance on IT systems and infrastructure, and increased network use and accelerated traffic growth. The report from telecommunications consultancy STL Partners and Vertiv, a global provider of critical digital infrastructure and continuity solutions, concludes telecom operators should address these challenges in two ways: By adopting energy efficiency best practices across their networks, and by encouraging their customers to adopt 5G-enabled services to reduce consumption and emissions in all walks of life.
STL Partners estimates global 5G traffic will overtake 3G/4G as soon as 2025, making sustainability an urgent priority for operators. In fact, 40% of enterprises surveyed for the report indicated energy efficiency should be the first or second priority for telecom operators when deploying 5G networks.
The report, Why Energy Management Is Critical To 5G Success, uses research including a survey of 500 enterprises globally to outline the challenges telcos face as they wrestle with the increased energy use and costs associated with 5G. The paper identifies several best practices aimed at mitigating those increases and costs, organized across five categories: Network technology: Deploying hardware and software designed and operated for efficiency. Facilities infrastructure: Including new edge data centers to support cloud native IT.Infrastructure management: Deploying the appropriate hardware and software to measure, monitor, manage, improve and automate the network
Organization and evaluation: Taking a holistic, full lifecycle view of costs and investments across the network.
Working with others: Embracing innovative and non-traditional commercial models, standards and collaboration
“Telecom operators making meaningful energy and cost reductions are doing so by evaluating the entire ecosystems around their network operations – people, objectives, infrastructure and partners,” said Scott Armul, vice president for global DC power and outside plant at Vertiv. “Because of the reliance on IT to enable 5G applications, a high degree of collaboration will be required across operators, OEMs and infrastructure providers, and customers to ensure deployments are optimized and every possible efficiency is pursued.”
The Report makes clear that network efficiency improvements and best practices, while important, are only one piece of the energy puzzle that comes with 5G. Those efforts must be paired with a more holistic, societal approach to curbing energy use and emissions that leverages 5G capabilities in ways far beyond the control of the telco operator.
“Operators are deploying 5G networks to grow new revenues. This growth will come from new connectivity and applications enabling operators’ customers’ own transformation journeys,” said Phil Laidler, director at STL Partners. “To be credible, informed partners for their customers, operators must lead by example. Energy strategy is a great place to start.”
In terms of influencing customer behaviors in order to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions, the report identified three industries with the potential for significant improvement through the use of 5G services. The manufacturing sector could achieve up to $730 billion worth of benefits by 2030 through the use of 5G to enable advanced predictive maintenance and automation. Transportation and logistics could get up to $280 billion in benefits by 2030 through advanced driver assistance, connected traffic infrastructure, and automated home deliveries. And, finally, the report suggests 5G could allow the healthcare sector to provide improved access to healthcare services for up to 1 billion patients by 2030 while simultaneously reducing emissions through higher asset utilization, reduced patient and clinician travel, and higher clinician productivity.
Influencing such behaviors is critical to operators’ efforts to mitigate the environmental impact of 5G, but there is work to do in order to build the partnerships needed. Just 37% of those surveyed said they see operators as credible partners in reducing carbon emissions today, but 56% said they believed telcos could be credible partners in the future.
Additional details, including ways telcos can lead customers to use 5G in sustainable ways and strategies for improving efficiency across 5G networks, are available in the report, which can be downloaded at Vertiv.com. STL Partners is hosting a webinar on the topic, featuring experts from Vertiv, on March 2. To register for Clean Energy: Critical For 5G’s Success?, visit STLPartners.com/webinars.
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
The rollout of 5G in South Africa’s urban centres is likely to be one of the most significant technology events of 2021. Where 3G and 4G LTE technology provided increased speeds compared to their predecessors, 5G will establish an entirely new innovation platform upon which many of the technologies and day-to-day conveniences of the future will be built.
It’s less of iteration on previous technologies and more of a total digital transformation in how we connect to virtual and physical worlds. The number of connected devices will grow exponentially, linking previously static infrastructure – cars, clothes, parking meters – to a smart network that constantly generates and processes vast amounts of data.
In line with this, the 5G services market is expected to grow at an astronomical rate, from just over $41-billion in 2020 to more than $414-billion in 2027. Research by MIT indicates that, between 2020 and 2035, 5G’s contribution to global GDP will be roughly the size of India’s entire economy.
These changes will impact consumers, businesses and industries in ways we are yet to fully understand, but early signs already point to a number of expected benefits.
Supercharged media consumption
Media and entertainment companies stand to benefit greatly. With movie theatres closed and ongoing restrictions on large-scale events, consumers seeking an escape from the pressures of lockdown are flocking to streaming services such as Netflix and Multichoice’s Showmax.
The higher speeds – enabling ultra-HD or 4K streaming quality – and lower costs associated with 5G could completely transform consumer habits in terms of home entertainment.
Technologies such as virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) could finally see the mass adoption they’ve been promising for nearly a decade. With international travel still severely restricted in many countries, consumers could ‘visit’ game reserves and tourist destinations via virtual experiences and enjoy a sense of escapism without the need to hop on a flight, thereby improving the much-depleted tourism market.
A win for remote work
Office workers, newly liberated from the confines of corporate headquarters, could be among the first to experience the power of 5G in their day-to-day work.
Expect to see major advances in video call quality and innovation as collaboration platforms – already experiencing record growth due to the shift to remote work – introduce richer employee experiences made possible by the higher speeds.
The connected everything
With lower latency, increased reliability and increased spectrum available, 5G is expected to turbocharge the rollout of the Internet of Things (IoT). Forbes estimates the number of IoT devices will increase from seven billion in 2018 to 22 billion by 2025.
In which industries will 5G-enabled IoT make an impact? The short answer is: likely all of them.
Mass digitisation of public services could support the building of smart cities where key infrastructure is connected to a central network, enabling predictive maintenance and improved traffic management, for example.
In healthcare, junior doctors could be trained for surgery via AR or VR delivered via 5G, and telemedicine – which has become even more vital in light of the pandemic – is set to experience what some analysts describe as a ‘tsunami of growth’.
In manufacturing, 5G could achieve cost optimisations by enabling virtual control of machines and telemetry or information exchange between large numbers of connected devices in real-time.
These benefits won’t be realised simply through the deployment of 5G, however. Organisations will need robust digital transformation strategies supported by systems such as enterprise resource planning platforms that can process, store and analyse vast amounts of data from huge numbers of disparate sources.
Integrated business applications that can harness the power of exponential technologies such as artificial intelligence will help an organisation find hidden value in their data, and help bring to light new opportunities for commercialisation and process improvements through things like predictive maintenance.
The arrival of 5G is likely to transform the way we live, work and play. Organisations that can think big and put in place the technology tools and processes needed to harness the power of advanced connectivity could position themselves for an era of near-limitless innovation and growth.
Samantha Naidoo, Telco Industry Value Advisor at SAP Africa
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
It’s safe to say that high points during the COVID-19 pandemic have been few and far between. South Africans were, however, met with at least one welcome development earlier this year with the launch of the country’s first 5G which supports both commercial mobile and fixed wireless 5G services.
Although people were confined to their homes for an extended period of time during lockdown, many South Africans living in major metros were able to use 5G technology to stay in touch, work from home and keep themselves entertained.
Nicholas Naidu, Managing Executive: Group Technology Strategy, Architecture & Assurance at Vodacom
Not surprisingly, the demand for data during this time was greater than ever before. Vodacom recorded a 40% increase in mobile data traffic in South Africa during the last week of June during the peak of the pandemic, compared with pre-COVID-19 lockdown levels.
As the citizens of the country increasingly turned to technology as a lifeline to remain connected to the outside world, the disparity of South Africa’s digital divide was brought all the more sharply into focus.
The challenge around internet access in South Africa is certainly not new. The broader sub-Saharan Africa region has long battled with widespread access to connectivity, with mobile internet user penetration across the region now sitting at 26% according to statistics from GSMA Intelligence, which is forecast to increase to 39% by 2025.
Looking specifically at South Africa, Statistics SA estimates that the country’s mobile internet access penetration is currently at 52.8% of the population.
The affordability of smartphones also continues to be a significant hurdle when it comes to closing the digital divide. In order to truly narrow the divide, there’s a great need to be able to provide both coverage and connectivity, as well as devices at a lower cost, especially for those living in rural areas.
According to the World Bank, for every approximate 10% increase in mobile broadband penetration, there is a 1% increase in GDP in a country.
Many people may not realise that newer generations of mobile technologies like 4G and 5G don’t just offer impressive, faster download speeds, they also have a key role to play in making it more cost-effective for network operators to provide internet connectivity to larger numbers of people.
This is because they can fit more data into the same amount of spectrum, which results in lower capital and operating expenditure costs versus continuing to roll out legacy mobile networking technologies to meet the exponentially growing demand for data services. The possibilities are exciting. The unfortunate reality, however, is that only 9% of the total population in Sub Saharan Africa is currently connected using 4G, according to the GSMA.
Creating the foundation for a tech-enabled future
Spectrum allocation needs to be urgently addressed if sub-Saharan Africa is to bridge its connectivity gap. This is not only important for the sake of bridging the digital divide, but also for the region’s ability to remain competitive in the context of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR).
5G is quickly emerging as a key enabler of a new technologically driven world in the 4IR era. As a more efficient technology than its predecessors, 5G was designed to meet the growing data and connectivity requirements of modern society.
Not only does the latest generation of mobile technology use spectrum in a much more efficient manner than its predecessors, as mentioned above, it can also fit more data into the same amount of spectrum (known as spectral efficiency measured in terms of bits/Hz). This makes it a good option to provide fibre-like connectivity in areas which currently do not have fibre to the home or business.
5G will enable fibre-like speeds using the mobile network. The higher speeds from 5G will also enable entirely new applications in future like augmented and Virtual Reality (VR) which will be helpful to realise new applications such as e-education, remote healthcare and also entirely new forms of entertainment like watching a sports game live in VR from your home.
Another area which 5G significantly improves upon is latency. This is the time it takes for devices to send and receive signals between each other, which has become essential to applications that require near-real-time responses.
Improved latency will also support cloud gaming, smart homes, smart cities and mission-critical smart manufacturing and utilities. 5G devices are also capable of connecting many more applications and devices to the network. It is for this reason that the technology is widely viewed as the true enabler of the Internet of Things.
When it comes to people living in rural areas being able to afford 5G devices, it is worth noting that 5G devices are expected to become more quickly accessible to South Africans in future comparing the same time curve since the introduction of 4G devices.
This is already illustrated by countries such as China, where we have seen the wide proliferation of 5G devices in a fairly short space of time. The rollout of 5G in countries like China, USA, South Korea and also many European countries, will create economies of scale which in turn vastly improves the affordability of devices.
In addition to this, we are already seeing the introduction of increasingly cost-effective 5G enabled smartphones around the world, not just in the premium segment but also in the mid-tier segment.
South Africa has already seen the considerable benefits of 5G in catering for the increased demand for data during our national lockdown, but this is just the tip of the iceberg. Higher generation mobile technologies have a vital part to play in driving a more equal and digitally-enabled future. It’s more important than ever to focus on making the widespread adoption of these technologies a reality.
Nicholas Naidu, Managing Executive: Group Technology Strategy, Architecture & Assurance at Vodacom
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
Indications have emerged that the 5G consumer market will grow to $31 trillion by 2030 especially at the rate e-commerce and other Internet of Things are growing. This was contained in a report from Ericsson ConsumerLab called Harnessing the 5G Consumer Potential. The report estimates that communications service providers (CSPs) could earn $3.7 trillion of that total – a figure that could increase further as new adjacent digital services opportunities arise.
5G Messages
The report also says that CSPs could generate up to $131 billion by 2030 from digital service revenues alone, by proactively bundling and marketing 5G use cases. About 40% of these revenue projections are attributed to consumer spending on enhanced video, augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) and cloud gaming over 5G networks.
The report projects that AR is likely to drive more than half of all consumer spending on immersive media by 2030 – starting with gaming and extending to other areas like shopping, education and remote collaboration.
Key findings also highlight how the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on personal finances and financial priorities may have affected consumers’ willingness to pay a premium for 5G subscriptions. In early 2019, the average consumer was willing to pay a 20%premium for 5G. As 2020 draws to an end, that figure has dropped to 10%.
However, one in three early adopters globally are still willing to pay a 20% premium. Such high levels of early adopter take-up could help drive economic recovery, according to the report.
The report also projects that by proactively driving 5G consumer adoption, CSPs could gain 34% higher 5G average revenue per user (ARPU) by 2030. This could boost consumer revenues at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2.7% compared to flat revenue growth of 0.03% by taking a passive approach across the decade.
“This is the first time that Ericsson has presented a revenue forecast for the 5G consumer market, which remains the core business of communications service providers. Through our research, we have highlighted the role of use case development, tariff innovation, quality 5G coverage and ecosystem partnerships to unlock the true potential of this market,” says Jasmeet Singh Sethi, Head of ConsumerLab at Ericsson Research.
“It is clear that 5G will drive enormous opportunities for CSPs in consumer business over the decade. As this journey is already underway, those CSPs that quickly and proactively evolve their consumer propositions are likely to be bigger winners.”
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
A partnership between Airtel and global telecoms equipment firm, Ericsson aims at modernizing the Fourth Generation (4G) telecoms network in Kenya has been penned. The telco signed a deal in August 2020 but was finalized last week is to enhance the quality of voice and data – this is expected to be done by leveraging Ericsson’s Radio System and Packet Core solutions. This project is also expected to make Kenya ready for 5G deployments.
Prasanta Das Sarma, CEO, Airtel Kenya
“Robust and secure communications are an essential component of a digital society in Kenya. We are firmly anchored to the strategy of delivering reliable connections across the country and are looking forward to expanding the high-quality mobile broadband services to our subscribers,” says Prasanta Das Sarma, CEO of Airtel Kenya. Fadi Pharaon, President of Ericsson Middle East and Africa, says, “Together with Airtel, we will implement this project that aims to establish an advanced LTE network in Kenya, providing Airtel’s customers an enriched experience – both in the consumer and business segments.”
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
Rain South Africa, a data-only network provider in South Africa has launched South Africa’s first 5G network in parts of Johannesburg and Tshwane, and it is offering prices that make fibre connections seem slow.
In a statement on Wednesday (18 September), Rain’s chief marketing officer Khaya Dlanga said that the service will first launch in parts of Johannesburg and Tshwane, with access being made available to select customers. Other interested users can apply for 5G through Rain’s website, and will be alerted once it is available in their region.
Here Is All You Need To Know
Selected customers in Rain’s 5G coverage area have been invited to be the first to purchase ultra-fast 5G, unlimited internet from R1,000 per month, according to Khaya Dlanga.
Rain will then deliver a state-of-the-art 5G router to a customer’s home. No installation is required, the router is simply plug-and-play and you will connected immediately.
The speed and capacity of the 5G network, together with the latest Wifi 6 technology in the router, will enable rain users to stream high-definition video to multiple devices simultaneously.
Khaya Dlanga said the company has achieved speeds of 700 Mbps during testing, but the typical client will see speeds around 200 Mbps.
Dlanga said that the initial offering aims to provide fast, affordable and easy to install wireless connectivity to homes and businesses as an alternative to ADSL fibre and fixed-LTE.
During the course of the next year 5G coverage area will be extended to Durban and Cape Town, Dlanga said.
5G is the latest iteration evolution of wireless data standards, and promises to be roughly 10 times faster than the current state-of-the-art 4G used by cellphone networks, while also being more reliable.
Vodacom and MTN have both said they could launch 5G locally in 2019, but have been restricted by a lack of access to the necessary radio frequency spectrum.
In a policy discussion document released in August, South Africa’s national treasury said data prices could decline by as much as 25% if the appropriate spectrum is released in South Africa.
The release of spectrum, Treasury said, would reduce the cost of doing business in SA and contribute up to 0.6% in economic growth.
If implemented, that would be the first time in 14 years that additional spectrum is released for use, after the state repeatedly missed its own deadlines to do so.
Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world
5G is finally here. With the 5G infrastructure, it will become almost possible to download an HD movie in seven seconds — 40 times faster than 4G. This will be a big boost for countries like Equatorial Guinea where it will take over 22 hours to download a 5-gigabyte movie.
5G has now reached an advanced stage where it can be implemented on a wider scale after years of research. Countries like the US, the UK, South Korea, Japan, and the Scandinavian region are already positioning themselves for wide-scale adoption, first rolling out 5G services on a trial basis in select areas. For many, it would be fully operational by the end of 2019 or 2020. According to Ericsson, the new 5G technology has the business potential of $619 billion in revenue opportunity for telecom operators globally by 2026. Below, we consider how 5G technology will improve output volume of African startups.
Reduction in Cost
Among the potential advantages are high data rates, reduced latency, energy savings, cost reductions, and higher system capacity. Of course, you would expect an increase in cost by internet service providers for 5G services in order to cover the initial cost of installing 5G infrastructure, but all these would become inconsequential in the future as consumers can get more value for their services. The cost will include saving time and energy usage. A person with a 5G smartphone could download a 3-D movie in about 6 seconds. On 4G, it would take 6 minutes.
But note this: 5G is never really putting an end to the increasing cost of internet use. It is better to understand the implication of 5G technology from these contrasting sides of a coin. In 2013, you would require on average $76 a month for internet subscription according to the United States’ Bureau of Labor statistics. That figure is up 50% from the $51 a month consumers were paying in 2007, the year that the iPhone was launched. By 2019, Cisco (CSCO) forecasts that mobile data traffic to and from cell towers (not offloaded to Wi-Fi) will grow by 57%. With this forecast and should data plans stay the same four years down the road, the average user’s smartphone bill could grow by $43 a month to $119.
However, one key respite 5G is bringing to the table is in the quality of services.
‘‘Initially, 5G subscriptions might cost more than 4G, so that the telecom operators can differentiate the different services. My guess is that with time the operators will push the monthly cost for a 5G subscription to the same range as today’s subscriptions, since most people don’t want to pay more than they are already doing. Hence you will get a much better service for your money. Huge investments will definitely be needed for 5G. Spectrum will be expensive, irrespective of what kind of bands that will be used. Deployment of new base stations and backhaul infrastructure will also be expensive.’’
So with faster internet infrastructure, expect more volumes of output.
The World Bank identified broadband Internet connectivity as a key catalyst for economic growth with every 10 percent increase in connectivity enabling a 1.38 percent growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
“For instance, the average Internet speed in Nigeria might be 3.9Mbps but, if you are in Lagos, you could choose to buy a 4G connection and experience 10 to 20Mbps. If faster speeds are available, you do not need to worry about the average speed, hence it should not be a cause for slowing down economic activity. However, if you live or work in an area without fast access, then, for certain types of business, this would be an impediment to growth. Note also that if you do not have a fast access available your average speed is likely to be considerably worse than the nation’s average, because that’s the way averages work. This is the ‘Digital Divide’,” noted the Chief Executive Officer, Spectranet, David Venn.
5G Will Unleash More New Disruptive Ideas and Innovations
No gainsaying the fact that 5G technology will lead to the explosion of new disruptive ideas.
‘‘Many of the benefits probably aren’t yet apparent to us. Wireless network operators initially resisted proposals to give their customers mobile access to the internet, questioning why they would want it. At the dawn of 4G’s adoption no one could have predicted the new business models that grew on the back of mobile broadband, like Uber, Spotify and Facebook,’’ the World Economic Forum noted in its World Economic Forum Annual Meeting.
Unarguably, 5G would be a great enabler for the explosion of more disruptive innovations. One such innovation which has already achieved momentum is the Internet of Things. Embedded with electronics, Internet connectivity, and other forms of hardware, these devices can communicate and interact with others over the Internet, and they can be remotely monitored and controlled. One commentator describes how bizarre the world of the internet could get:
‘‘When someone wants Rebecca dead, he can just instruct her car to drive off a cliff. Mad stuff.’’
This is what ideas such as the Internet of Things are bringing to the table. One clear example of this is already seen in self-driving cars by Google. 5G will make such things become as ubiquitous as ever.
Consider alone the potential impact of the Internet of Things alone. McKinsey & Company says the Internet of Things (IoT) has a potential economic impact of $2.7 to $6.2T until 2025.
A host of disruptive applications will be built around 5G’s ultra-fast networks and real-time responsiveness once the infrastructure is fully deployed. Particularly, immediate disruptions are expected in these areas:
massive Machine Type Communications (mMTC) such as solar-powered streetlights or other innovations to help citywide infrastructure
Device-to-device public safety communications that don’t need active cellular coverage
Real-time operations employing robotics to link surgeons with remote sites
Machina Research forecasts “IoT will account for one-quarter of the global 41 million 5G connections in 2024.” Approximately ¾ of these will be in the auto industry via embedded vehicle connections.
Although the report sees 5G deployment “highly concentrated” in Japan, Korea, Europe, China and North America (with Japan and Korea leading the charge), it will also help operators extend their opportunities in new markets.
‘‘5G use case is in web apps. While it’s true that it’s just as easy to download apps as it is to download any program, and 5G makes the whole experience seem instant, you can free up storage space and avoid installation steps by using a web-based app that’s already set up and ready for you to stream from a web browser.
In other words, 5G will bring a world where you need very little storage on your phone because everything, including your apps, are instantly available from the cloud,’’ noted Tim Fisher, a technology expert
So get ready. 5G is bound to create more disruptions, just like Facebook, fin-techs and other digitally-focused platforms. For African startups, they would definitely be in the value chain.
Upsurge In Internet Users. More Consumers Available Online
With 5G, expect a huge upsurge in the number of consumers available online. 5G will, therefore, provide network support for massive increases in data traffic. According to Cisco, by 2022, mobile will represent nearly 20 percent of all global IP traffic, fueled in part by the Internet of Things.
‘‘Mobile traffic will be on the verge of reaching an annual run rate of a zettabyte by the end of 2022. In that timeframe, mobile traffic will represent nearly 20 percent of global IP traffic and will reach 930 exabytes annually — nearly 113 times more than all mobile traffic generated globally in 2012. (An exabyte is 1,000,000,000 gigabytes and a zettabyte is 1,000 exabytes.),’’ noted Cisco in its annual Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast Update (2017–2022)
5G will fuel more connectivity and internet penetration for consumers. Just take this fact for instance: although launched in 2014, in 2017, 4G already carried 72 percent of the total mobile traffic and represented the largest share of mobile data traffic by network type.
Cisco predicts that 4G will continue to grow faster than other networks, however, the percentage share will go down slightly to 71 percent of all mobile data traffic by 2022.
“The full value and transformational capabilities of 5G cannot simply be measured by performance improvements over 4G (higher bandwidth, broader coverage, and lower latency),” wrote Thomas Barnett, director of Cisco’s service-provider thought leadership in a blog about the report. “5G will also deliver enhanced power efficiency, cost optimization, massive IoT connection density and dynamic allocation of resources based on awareness of content, user, and location.”
Cisco’s study also noted that 5G growth will be driven by IoT applications — sensors and meters on the low end to autonomous cars on the high end. Awareness of content, user and location will determine how 5G resources are allocated. “This technology is expected to solve frequency licensing and spectrum management issues. Large scale commercial deployments are not expected until the latter years of the current forecast.
Interestingly, Cisco’s forecast also sees an opportunity for internet-based businesses, as more and more consumers will find online presence almost inescapable.
The study notes that:
By 2022, 5G connections will represent over three percent of total mobile connections and will account for nearly 12 percent of global mobile data traffic.
By 2022, the average 5G connection (22 GB/month) will generate nearly three times more traffic than the average 4G connection (8 GB/month).
By 2022, 4G connections will be 54.3 percent of total mobile connections, compared to 34.7 percent in 2017. The global mobile 4G connections will grow from 3 billion in 2017 to 6.7 billion by 2022 at a CAGR of 18 percent. 5G connections will appear on the scene in 2019 and will grow several thousand percents from under half a million in 2019 to over 400 million by 2022.
Indeed, 5G will create a whole new world of customer experience. 5G will also change Peer-to-Peer connections because instead of just servers having access to quick upload speeds, your phone and computer can do the same.
‘‘Every 5G cell has a minimum upload speed of 10 Gbps (1.25 gigabytes per second), meaning that in ideal conditions, users can transfer 1.25 GB of data every single second between devices. This is much faster than what’s currently widely available. Having such a fast upload speed on your end, and other people having access to 5G’s ultrafast download speeds, means that others can download data from you as fast as you can upload it,’’ Fisher noted.
‘‘P2P can be used in many forms, like when making phone calls, transferring files, relaying information between vehicles in a smart city, automating factory equipment, and interconnecting smart sensors in homes, cities, farms, etc.’’
Bottom Line
5G will definitely see a boom in the African startup ecosystem. It will not only make the mobile experience efficient but memorable. World Bank report estimates show that a 10% higher 3G penetration in 2012 resulted in an increase of 0.15 percentage points in the annual growth rate of GDP per capita. The study also estimated the impact of mobile data usage across 14 countries found that a doubling of mobile data consumption raised GDP by 0.5 percentage points. The study also noted that for every 10 percentage point increase in broadband penetration in China there was a 2.14% increase in GDP.
In contrast to other findings that broadband has the biggest economic impact of all ICTs, simple 2G mobile penetration was found to have a bigger and more significant impact than fixed broadband on the Senegalese economy. Each 10 percentage point increase in mobile penetration was found to raise GDP growth by 0.44% (at a 10% significance level).
So African startups should expect more from 5G! Such sectors that would see the immediate impact are Virtual and augmented reality, video, and music streaming services, among others.
Charles Rapulu Udoh
Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.
