One Year of Commercialization, Real 5G Competition Begins... SKT Expands Ultra-Cooperation, LGU+ Increases Exports

[Asia Economy Reporter Seulgina Jo] The world's first commercial 5G mobile communication service will mark its first anniversary on the 3rd of next month. The three major domestic carriers have launched the 5G era, emphasizing ultra-high speed and ultra-connectivity to seize market dominance, but challenges such as call quality controversies and the lack of killer content remain. SK Telecom, LG Uplus, and other carriers plan to accelerate the discovery of new 5G business models and expand 5G content exports in the second year of commercialization.

◆SK Telecom Expands Ultra-Cooperation with Leading Domestic and International Companies = SK Telecom evaluated the past year by stating that the market preemption effect has become evident after achieving the world's first 5G commercialization title. This year, it plans to avoid exhausting competition limited to the domestic market and instead discover and promote new 5G business models in collaboration with leading domestic and international companies. As of January, SK Telecom's domestic 5G market share is 44.7%, with approximately 2.22 million 5G subscribers. On August 21 last year, it became the first in the world to surpass 1 million 5G subscribers.

SK Telecom stated, "Following 2G to 4G communications, we have become the number one mobile carrier chosen by the public in 5G as well," adding, "With Korea being the first to build 5G infrastructure, domestic smartphone and telecommunications equipment companies have experienced a trickle-down effect, rapidly increasing their global 5G market share."

SK Telecom's 5G leadership has directly led to the expansion of new businesses domestically and internationally. A representative example is that renowned global companies such as Microsoft (MS) and AWS (Amazon Web Services) selected SK Telecom as their cloud business partner first among all global carriers and uniquely among Korean carriers. SK Telecom also achieved significant overseas business wins, including the U.S. ATSC 3.0 next-generation broadcasting and EU and U.S. quantum cryptography communications. It transferred or exported 5G technology to leading carriers in various countries such as Deutsche Telekom in Europe, Taiwan Mobile in Taiwan, and IT&E in Guam, USA.

SK Telecom aims to challenge the world's best 5G through ultra-cooperation with leading domestic and international companies this year. Park Jung-ho, CEO of SK Telecom, presented 'ultra-cooperation' as the management theme for the new year at CES earlier this year, emphasizing the urgent need for cooperation among Korean ICT companies, especially in AI and related fields.

First, SK Telecom is preparing cloud gaming services in collaboration with MS and plans to open a mixed reality content production facility called ‘Jump Studio.’ SK Telecom and MS currently offer a total of 92 games through the pilot service ‘Project xCloud.’ As long as there is a connection, users can access cloud servers anytime and anywhere to enjoy games, which is regarded as a ‘game changer’ that could transform the existing gaming industry landscape.

Additionally, SK Telecom plans to launch the world's first consumer device applying world-leading quantum cryptography technology and provide an upgraded ‘security’ solution to 5G users. A 5G and AI-based video coloring service is also set to be released soon.

In the B2B sector, SK Telecom designates this year as the ‘first year of 5G B2B business’ and aims to expand B2B business comprehensively. It plans to closely cooperate with leading companies across various domestic and international industries to act as a catalyst for innovation in Korean industries.

SK Telecom plans to establish 12 nationwide 5G MEC (Mobile Edge Computing) hubs and lead the cloud industry revolution. In partnership with the world’s top two global cloud companies, AWS and MS, it is preparing to launch the world’s first nationwide ‘5G Edge Cloud’ service. Once commercialized, ‘5G Edge Cloud’ will enable ultra-low latency communication services such as unmanned delivery robots and remote medical care, which are expected to bring changes across industries including manufacturing, distribution, healthcare, autonomous driving, and robotics.

Furthermore, SK Telecom will build a ‘Private 5G Network’ at SK Hynix’s semiconductor production plant to realize a 5G smart factory that will lead the semiconductor industry’s supercycle, and together with Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, it plans to establish the world’s first 5G smart power plant.

Yu Sang-young, head of SK Telecom’s MNO business division, said, “By commercializing 5G first in the world last year, we were able to seize 5G new business opportunities in domestic and international markets,” and added, “We are confident that the 5G business models to be launched in earnest this year will drive SK Telecom’s next decade.”

◆LG Uplus Declares Leadership in 5G Global Exports = LG Uplus, marking the first anniversary of 5G commercialization, declared that it will launch ‘5G Service 3.0’ this year and actively expand 5G content exports based on it.

It plans to invest 2.6 trillion KRW over five years in content and technology development, expanding customer value into daily life areas such as education and gaming, and advancing services centered on AR and VR functions to introduce ‘5G Service 3.0.’ This refers to AR educational content that can provide high-quality services based on the cloud and VR game services that can be easily enjoyed wirelessly with a single HMD without a PC.

In collaboration with the U.S. startup ‘Spatial Systems,’ LG Uplus will strengthen functions that allow users to create and share AR content directly and develop an augmented reality collaboration platform where meetings can be held using avatars based on AR technology, similar to a scene from the movie ‘Kingsman.’ It is also working with Google to develop AR content that uses AR technology to display internet search results as immersive images. The country’s first 3D AR English fairy tale service, ‘U+ Kids Live Library,’ plans to expand its collection to 300 volumes of famous domestic and international classic fairy tales preferred by parents within the year.

LG Uplus will invest 2.6 trillion KRW over five years in 5G content production and procurement, as well as wired and wireless convergence technology development such as AR and VR. This is about twice the average annual investment amount in related fields over the past five years.

Additionally, following China and Hong Kong, LG Uplus plans to actively pursue partnerships with global carriers preparing for 5G commercialization in Europe and Southeast Asia this year to expand 5G content exports.

At the end of last year, LG Uplus signed a cooperation agreement with China Telecom, which has 320 million mobile subscribers, to collaborate on immersive 5G content and solutions such as AR and VR. On the 23rd of this month, it signed a 5G VR content export contract with Hong Kong Telecom, the number one carrier in Hong Kong with 4.3 million subscribers, through a partnership with Hong Kong’s PCCW Group. VR content export agreements with global carriers preparing for 5G commercialization in Europe and Southeast Asia are also underway.

In the B2B sector, LG Uplus plans to intensify enterprise (B2B) 5G services by expanding 5G service application areas such as smart factories, drones, and mobility. It aims to build a ‘wireless factory’ by establishing 5G smart factories in domestic plants and moving into the demonstration phase. In the mobility sector, it will further advance 5G autonomous driving technology, which laid the foundation last year, and actively expand business opportunities.

The drone business will also be accelerated. Together with Doosan Mobility Innovation, LG Uplus plans to complete the integration of drone airframes and smart drone control and video services with the 5G communication network by the first half of the year, and subsequently jointly explore drone business opportunities using the established services.

Furthermore, LG Uplus has begun investing in base stations using the 28GHz frequency band, which secures ten times the bandwidth compared to the existing 3.5GHz band, moving one step closer to genuine 5G services. It also plans to focus on leading standalone (SA) 5G services that provide service solely through 5G.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.