A visitor tests HTC's VR facilities at a 5G technology and test seminar held in Beijing in April. (Photo/Xinhua)
New generation of internet will allow consumers to download 8-gigabit movie in seconds
With the world's largest number of 4G users, China's internet operators and telecom equipment makers are scrambling to gain an edge in the global race to develop 5G, or the fifth generation mobile communication technology.
This new generation of the internet will allow consumers to download an 8-gigabit movie in seconds and execute tasks that are thrilling but impossible in the 4G era, such as self-driving cars and the internet of things.
Chinese firms are working hard to put 5G into trial operation in 2018, after connecting more than 680 million users to 4G networks within two years.
Wen Ku, director of the telecom development department at the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, said the country has already finished the first phase of its 5G tests in September.
"The initial tests proved what technologies are feasible with 5G and strengthened companies' confidence in conducting further research and innovation," Wen said.
Domestic and foreign telecom firms have played an active role in the process, with contributions from Huawei Technologies Co Ltd, ZTE Corp, Ericsson AB and Nokia Corp.
The move is part of China's broader effort to lead the pack in rolling out 5G services. In 2013, the government set up the IMT-2020 (5G) Promotion Group to boost the development of 5G. The experimental stage of 5G will last three years from 2016 to 2018, before kicking off its commercial use in 2020.
"The second phase of test operations, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2017, will focus on how to integrate these technologies to provide solutions," Wen said, adding that chip makers and more firms will get involved in the initiative.
China Mobile Communications Corp, the world's largest telecom carrier by subscribers, is also making steady progress.
In August, the Beijing-based firm completed the world's first 5G drone prototype field trial by partnering with Ericsson, the Swedish telecom equipment maker.
