"Post-COVID Economic Recovery Led by 5G" SA Commercialization Within the Year... 200 Smart Factories to Be Established

[Asia Economy Reporter Seulgina Jo] Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the government is accelerating 5G investments to revitalize the economy by installing 5G indoor (in-building) base stations in over 2,000 facilities such as subways and department stores this year and commercializing the 5G standalone (SA) mode. The goal is also to establish more than 200 5G smart factories this year.

On the 8th, the Ministry of Science and ICT held the 3rd Pan-Government Public-Private Joint ‘5G+ Strategy Committee’ via video conference. This strategy committee was convened to mark the first anniversary of the world’s first 5G commercialization (April 3) and the announcement of the 5G+ strategy (April 8) last year, to review the progress of the 5G+ strategy and to create tangible results that the public can feel at an early stage.

During the meeting, reports were presented on the private sector’s achievements and plans from telecommunications and manufacturing companies, the government’s progress and future plans for the 5G+ strategy, followed by a review of tasks to leap forward as a leading 5G nation. Participants shared difficulties faced on the ground due to COVID-19 and agreed that 5G should play a role in finding breakthroughs to overcome the national crisis. It was explained that the economic crisis should be overcome through the 5G+ strategy and that it should become a new growth engine.

Domestic 5G subscribers surpassed the one million mark in June last year, two months after commercialization, and exceeded 5.77 million as of the end of February this year. The number of base stations nationwide (based on completion reports) was identified as 115,000 as of the 2nd of this month. This is more than three times the number at the time of commercialization (35,000 base stations).

Telecom companies plan to expand coverage by installing 5G in-building systems in over 2,000 facilities such as subways, airports, department stores, and small to medium-sized buildings this year to improve 5G service quality. The goal is to fully realize the ultra-high-speed, ultra-low-latency, and ultra-connected characteristics of 5G through the commercialization of 5G SA and the construction of 28 GHz band networks within the year. Earlier, the telecommunications industry, concerned about a potential deepening of economic contraction due to COVID-19, increased the scale of network investment in the first half of the year by 50%, from the initially planned 2.7 trillion won to 4 trillion won. Device manufacturers also plan to continuously introduce mid- to low-priced 5G smartphones to the market.

The government will also invest about 650 billion won across ministries to actively foster 5G+ strategic industries. It plans to implement regulatory reforms to discover and spread convergence services, discover new businesses, and establish a continuous monitoring system. It also presented 2020 goals and major plans for 15 5G+ strategic industry sectors, including network equipment, smartphones, and wearable devices. These industries are expected to grow as the number of countries commercializing 5G increases this year.

First, to maintain a market share of over 20% in the 2020 5G network equipment market, efforts will be made to localize equipment and parts and build infrastructure. For 5G smartphones, core components will be developed and a 28 GHz device testbed will be established to more than double sales compared to the previous year. The 5G smartphone market is expected to enter full competition this year with Apple launching its 5G-based iPhone and mid- to low-priced devices being released by companies like Huawei.

In the wearable device market, efforts will be made to achieve a 15% global market share for domestic companies by developing new healthcare products and establishing industrial development strategies. The global wearable device market this year is estimated to grow 9.0% year-on-year to 66.4 million units due to 5G commercialization and increased demand for healthcare devices.

Additionally, support for immersive content production, known as the ‘flower of 5G,’ will be expanded, and leading technologies in information security will be developed. The plan is to build 200 5G smart factories to lead the global market, which is significantly more than China’s target of around 50 this year. Furthermore, technology development and 5G-based infrastructure creation will be accelerated in fields such as drones, autonomous vehicles, smart cities, digital healthcare, robotics, and edge computing.

Cross-ministerial cooperation will also be promoted to spread the achievements of the 5G+ strategy. Currently, ministries are planning projects such as the development of ‘Doctor Answer 2.0,’ which can quickly diagnose and analyze major infectious disease symptoms and illnesses like hypertension, diabetes, fever, and abdominal pain; autonomous driving data collection and processing; vehicle communication and security; and core technologies for fully autonomous driving. These projects are expected to be finalized as new projects in 2021 after budget review by the Ministry of Economy and Finance within the year.

The meeting was attended by vice ministers from 11 ministries including the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Ministry of the Interior and Safety, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, as well as 13 private members including representatives from telecommunications and manufacturing companies, academia, and associations. Several private members participating in the discussion acknowledged difficulties on the ground such as decreased sales and concerns over parts supply due to COVID-19 but expressed expectations for new growth opportunities through aggressive 5G infrastructure expansion and the discovery of various non-face-to-face services in the post-COVID era where remote work, telecommuting, and non-face-to-face medical care become normalized.

Chairman Choi Ki-young, Minister of Science and ICT, said, “It has already been a year since we first commercialized 5G in the world, but there are still many shortcomings for the public to feel the changes.” He added, “We will create visible results early to leap forward as a leading 5G nation and overcome the economic crisis caused by COVID-19 through the 5G+ strategy by strengthening cross-ministerial and public-private cooperation so that it can become a new growth engine.”

The government plans to concretize the ‘Implementation Plan for Fostering 5G+ Strategic Industries’ reflecting the impact of COVID-19 through the results of this discussion and the operation of the 5G+ strategy inspection team scheduled to launch in the first half of the year.

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