How Ericsson sees 5G in Latin America

Enzo Zunino, Country Head of Ericsson in Chile, talks about how the Swedish company sees the development of 5G in Latin America.

The region is already moving towards 5G with commercial launches in the early stages in 10 countries, including Chile, Brazil, and Peru. What are the big bets for the advancement of 5G in 2022?

From the premise that 5G is already a fact, we can talk about the great commitments of providers, teleoperators and technology companies that we will work on together for next year. Undoubtedly, the joint work of all the actors is and will be key to the increasingly rapid implementation of fifth generation networks in the region.

The big bets for the region are in the industries as mining, the maritime industry, the ports, the forestry industry. In addition, industries 4.0 applied to sectors such as retail are a relevant challenge for what has to do with the implementations and arrival of 5G in the different territories.

In mining, the possibility of having greater computer security, large data transmission capacities - the so-called "data oceans" - and in very short periods of time, will provide promising scenarios. For example, operators working underground, in extreme conditions, will be able to teleoperate the machines from a safe environment. In turn, those whose nature of their work does not allow them to be in another environment and have the obligation to be in underground channels, will be able to have an instant and secure communication channel. That is something that does not exist today since the currently available technologies have limits on frequencies and range. At the same time, efficiency in operations will allow companies to save fuel, which will have an impact in reducing resource consumption, benefiting the environment, and making businesses more sustainable.

In the case of ports, similar opportunities of communication and efficiency appear. The effect produced by the containers, which often disable the internet signal, will no longer be a problem with 5G technology, achieving secure and stable connections. In addition, smart ports will provide greater safety for their workers and an optimization of their processes.

All this can be extrapolated to other industries such as retail, where supply chains equipped with applications developed for 5G promise great results in terms of efficiency and optimization.

Without a doubt, 5G offers various use cases. What are the industries that benefit most in the region thanks to this new technology?

5G will allow innovation to be brought to various industries, generating a large amount of knowledge, applications, and development that we still can't measure. This technology will be a main factor in economic transformation, generating competitiveness and improving efficiency in various sectors of the economy in the next decade and it is our challenge to provide these opportunities in all corners of the region.

The fifth-generation technology combines great connectivity capacity, very high speed with very low latency and end-to-end security. These characteristics allow the world of the Internet of Things to be massified to see it embodied in applications related to various industries such as mining with robotization and automation of activities, telemedicine, tele-education, smart cities, among others. The important thing is to look for applications that bring concrete benefits.

In mining, there are relevant applications, which are low latency, high speed and hyperconnectivity, but also something important that is security. 5G is the most secure standard ever developed. At a global level, there are machinery remote control applications where workers can be given more security, automation of procedures within the mine, in dedicated networks for that purpose. Another important example is ports, where 5G will allow much more efficient and safer management for operators. Here we see applications with remote control of the cranes that operate the containers, which allow a much more efficient unloading of the vessels.

How will the advancement of 5G impact the LATAM South market?

According to the latest Ericsson Mobility Report, the 5G market is projected to generate more than USD 28.4 billion per year by 2030 in enhanced mobile broadband revenue. This means a relevant impact in all kinds of industries. Let us remember that 5G will enable new applications for use and will generate from new businesses in already established companies to the creation of new companies entirely dedicated to the development of applications that run on fifth generation technology.

That is why we can say that 5G will impact economically but also socially, since the new applications developed will have an impact on the way people interact, educate themselves, inform themselves and entertain themselves. Clearly, the irruption of fifth generation networks in the communities will be a before and after in different areas. The emergence of new jobs and specializations derived from the capacity of technology will also shape the jobs of the future and the professionals of the future, laying the foundations for the next processes of digital transformation.

According to the latest Mobility Report, 4G is currently the dominant radio access technology, in fact, it represents 66% of subscriptions by the end of 2021. What strategy does Ericsson propose to be able to replace this and set 5G as the dominant technology? 

In the region, we estimate that by 2030 revenues of 56 million dollars will be generated, of which, a third will be dedicated to the development of 5G networks. It is a relevant business at the end of this decade. Ericsson constantly makes income projections and in that sense we see it as important. By 2026 it is thought that we will have 180 million fixed wireless connections. In this sense, the laying of networks by the operating companies is essential to achieve the goal that 5G service is available in every corner of the region. That is why we work continuously and jointly to get ever closer to that point.

Although new applications linked to technologies such as the Internet of Things and Artificial Intelligence will be more agile with the arrival of 5G, these new networks will complement existing ones. So, it is possible that in a while 5G will be the dominant technology, but this does not mean that 4G networks or other standards will disappear. It will be a great hyperconnected ecosystem.

What does the switch-on of the 5G commercial network in Chile represent?

In December 2021, in Chile, the first 5G network in the region was turned on, enabling the service with the telephone operators that won the spectrum. For us, this represents a big step in the setting up of fifth generation networks as the technology par excellence for all kinds of applications.

Being able to count on these networks already enabled means a great opportunity not only for us as service providers but also for companies and SMBs in Chile and the region that, based on the availability of the service, will be able to think and plan improvements in their processes, generate new applications, rethink business objectives and projections.

Additionally, we see that Chile and the entire region have invaluable potential regarding the practical uses of developments and implementations that can run on fifth generation networks. We see it in its industries such as mining, in the maritime industry, also in agriculture and very strongly in retail. In addition, everything related to entertainment such as the gaming sector, developers, music, will have a complete turnaround that will provide communities with new forms of entertainment and recreation.

Thanks to this first switching on of the network in Chile, which is a starting point, but with a long way to go, we can say that the future is here and that today we must think about 5G, live in 5G, and connect in 5G because that is where the evolution, improvement and great technological changes that we are already experiencing in the region go.

What are the observations about the 5G auction in Brazil?

We are very satisfied with what we call ‘the first step towards the start of the 5G Standalone operation in Brazil’. The model of this Brazilian auction is one of the most modern in the world, with an emphasis on universalization versus collection. For the first time in history, we will have a non-collective auction, in which capital is exchanged for investment. First, a check can be written that will go into the government trustees, or that same check can be converted into an investment. The second option, if well designed, promotes the competitiveness of the country. In other conditions, there would be no possibility of having 5G coverage on roads, small towns, or schools in the Amazon. The National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel) designed it to have this coverage. This will promote new business models, increase the competitiveness of our logistics, reduce inequalities through education and take work to the interior of the country, among other results.

 What are the next steps for Brazil?

5G is expected to be available in Brazilian capitals in July 2022. On this occasion, four network frequency bands (700 MHz, 2.3 GHz, 3.5 GHz, and 26 GHz) were auctioned, between national and regional lots, with exploitation rights for 20 years. Each band is responsible for meeting a specific demand. Not only people, but also things will interact differently with each other. The interaction will generate a mass of data that will help us make smarter decisions. In this new world, not only the consultation with the physician will be virtual, but also the operating table. It will be possible to drive a drone or a vehicle from a distance. The benefits of intelligence and productivity, virtual reality and augmented reality are innumerable. As Ericsson, we are working very closely with our customers and our customers' customers as orchestrators in creating the ecosystem that will enable all of this quickly, securely, and cost-effectively.

What should be prepared for operators and the government to be proactive in the implementation of 5G technology?

Preparing the infrastructure and equipping an antenna with 5G radios that allow the icon to appear on the smartphone is a small part of the 5G rollout process. Activating new technology to enable the transformation we all hope for will require all these actors to play very different roles. Operators will have to transform their business. You can see this movement in two ways: simply deploy; that is, be proactive to create services that do not currently exist, adding value and with a higher return on investment. For example: 5G will reshape the gaming market, which is one of the most promising ones, because it can bring computing power, with very low latency, high speed, and the ability to connect to 1 million devices per square kilometer (ten times more than in 4G). We may have advanced telemedicine services, highly connected education, or new agribusiness architectures. But operators will have to transform. When we talk about government, it is necessary to go beyond the regulatory role to act as promoters of research, development, and the creation of innovation ecosystems.

And for companies and other segments of the economy?

People embrace technology when they take a taxi, watch a movie, or order delivery. 5G has an unprecedented aspect of automation and digitization of companies. Therefore, companies in different sectors of the economy must adopt technology to remain competitive in the global market. When this connectivity is added, it gives all users greater potential to make a referral jump. Agribusiness is one of the sectors in which the region is a pioneer in technology, but not yet in connected technology. A large agricultural producer not only has technology in the field, automating machines; it also needs it on the roads, in inputs, in logistics and in the flow of crops.

Businesses will shift their focus to adopt technology. Therefore, the 5G standard is so different from 3G or 4G. It has a much greater impact on the creation of new models and on the need to promote the different government agencies.

For the end consumer, is 5G more than speed?

Yes! For the consumer, 5G could be their home broadband, the so-called FWA. It will replace what is available in many areas, especially where fiber optics are not available. Players will be able to experience connected gameplay with network processing, without affecting latency. Just as we will see new business models in virtual reality and augmented reality for individuals or small businesses. Innovation comes from the outside in. As with the launch of 4G, no one could describe that a revolution would come in the market for hotels, videos, and individual transportation. The potential in terms of fast networks and computing power is endless.

5G is like a teleportation of people and computing power. In computing power, from the cloud to your device, whether it's a gaming console or a sophisticated AI computer. And to people too, because you can be sitting on the sofa in your house watching a soccer game with the referee on the field in sight; or have a doctor perform surgery remotely across the country.