Representatives from leading telcos, technology providers and regulators sat down with industry experts to discuss the potential of 5G-Advanced (5G-A) technology to transform various sectors, and what groundbreaking initiatives are laying the groundwork for the 5G-A revolution. The experts also jointly declared 2024 as the first year of 5G-A in the Middle East.
The panelists included:
Dr Bilel Jamoussi, Deputy Director General of ITU Telecommunication Standardization Bureau and Director of the Telecommunication Standardization Policy Department.
Mahmoud R., Head of Business Development, Innovation & Technology, DUDr. Sherif.
Khaled Al Suwaidi, Senior Vice President, Core Networks & Platforms, Etisalat
Günther Ottendorfer, Chief Technology and Information Officer, OOREDOO Qatar
Stellios S**Vides, Chief Technology Officer, Vodafone, Oman
Tang Zhentian, President of the Marketing & Solution Sales Dept of Huawei's Middle East and Central Asia Region.
Noman Waheed, Chief Technology Officer, Nokia Middle East
Chafic Traboulsi, Vice President and Head of Networks, Ericsson Middle East
Firas Mehdhebi, Managing Director, PMP Strategy, Middle East Private Equity** (moderator).
Implications for deploying 5G-A.
At the beginning of the discussion, Toni Eid, Founder of Telecom Review Group, emphasized the significance of the first year of 5G-A deployment in the Middle East. As a breakthrough connectivity technology, 5G-A has great potential to support economic growth, innovation, and improved quality of life across the region. Subsequently, the participating experts provided an in-depth discussion on various aspects of 5G technology, and shared their unique insights on the application and impact of 5G, as well as the creation of new opportunities and industry transformation by 5G-A.
Mahmoud R., Head of Business Development, Innovation & Technology, DUDr. Sherif highlighted the advantages of 5G-A, including ultra-low latency, higher uplink speed, deterministic experience, and perception and precise positioning.
The key role of cooperation and partnerships.
Tang Zhentian, President of Marketing & Solution Sales Dept of Huawei's Middle East and Central Asia Region, shared Huawei's contribution to 5G development in the region and its investment in promoting innovation. By partnering with 3GPP to promote 5G standardization, 5The 5G concept has made breakthroughs in the Middle East and Central Asia, and will bring greater opportunities and value to all ecosystem partners.
Noman Waheed, CTO of Nokia Middle East, also highlighted that the cooperation with telecom operators has played a key role in the expansion of 5G services. Nokia's ongoing partnerships with communications service providers (CSPs) are committed to leveraging 5G-A innovations to enhance the human-machine experience. Waheed attaches great importance to establishing strategic cooperation with partners, and hopes to work together to fully unleash the potential of 5G and usher in a new era of stronger human-machine connectivity.
Dr Bilel Jamoussi, Deputy Director General of ITU's Telecommunication Standardization Bureau and Director of the Telecommunication Standardization Policy Department, shared his views on 5G-A adoption from a regulatory perspective. He described the challenges at the organizational and policy levels, particularly in the development of standards for optical technologies. At present, all parties involved are working to solve the relevant problems and realize the full value of this technology.
The importance of innovation and infrastructure.
Khaled Al Suwaidi, Senior Vice President, Core & Platforms, Etisalat by E&, emphasized the importance of innovation and infrastructure. One of the main points he made was that 5G-A enhances features such as slicing technology, SLA, and network openness. On the business side, Suwaidi said, "We started the construction of the MEC and 5G core network in 2021." In 2023, the company conducted a RedCap demonstration during the Consumer Electronics & Communications Show (Gitex) in Dubai, Middle East.
Chafic Traboulsi, Vice President and Head of Networks at Ericsson Middle East, highlighted the role of 5G-A in promoting sustainable development. He said that 5G-A technology features include reduced power consumption, improved handover processes, expanded extended reality (XR) applications, enhanced uplink capabilities, and more efficient management of network slices. The comprehensive improvement of 5G-A will not only further improve network connectivity, but also take into account the richness, sustainability, and efficiency of functions.
Günther Ottendorfer, Chief Technology and Information Officer of Ooredoo Qatar, delved into the transformation that 5G-A will bring to network capabilities. By focusing on the improvement of network capacity, speed and latency, Ottendor demonstrated how Ooredoo used 5G to support the World Cup for the first time, bringing the ultimate viewing experience to fans, and also demonstrating Ooredoo's unremitting pursuit of network reliability. In addition, Ookla's SpeedTest test results show that the UAE, Qatar and Kuwait are leading the way in mobile and broadband speeds, demonstrating that 5G development is having a real impact in the Middle East. Ottendor is proud that the Middle East is already leading the world in 5G development, and 5G-A will further strengthen the region's leading position.
Stellios S**Vides, CTO of Vodafone Oman, emphasized that network infrastructure upgrades are critical to meet 5G-A demands and enhance customer experience. S**Vides said Vodafone Oman's 5G network already covers 66 per cent of the country's population, while the company's strategic focus is to "identify data points that can be used for optimisation". The Company's 5G SA network-based Voice over Internet Protocol (VONR) service for NR has entered the proof-of-concept (PoC) stage.
During the seminar, a launch ceremony was also held for the first year of 5G-A, demonstrating the determination of all parties in the telecom industry to actively work together to promote the development of the industry.