1.  SK Telecom, the largest mobile operator in South Korea, announces an agreement to partner with MobiledgeX to enable a new generation of connected devices, content and experiences, creating new business models and revenue opportunities leading into 5G (?).

   “In the 5G era, Mobile Edge Computing will be a key technology for next-generation industries including realistic media and autonomous driving,” said Jong-kwan Park, Senior Vice President and Head of Network Technology R&D Center of SK Telecom. “Based on this partnership, SK Telecom will continue to drive technology innovations to provide customers with differentiated 5G services.”

   The relationship between SK Telecom and MobiledgeX reflects an aligned vision for the future of mobile operators as key players in future mobile application development, performance, security, and reliability. This vision is shared by leading cloud providers and device makers working with MobiledgeX to seamlessly pair the power and distribution of mobile operator infrastructure with the convenience and depth of developer tooling of hyperscale public cloud and the scale, mobility and distribution of billions of end user devices.

   “Deutsche Telekom created MobiledgeX as an independent company to drive strategic collaboration across the world’s leading telecoms, public cloud providers, device makers and the surrounding ecosystem – enabling a new era of business models, operating efficiencies and mobile experiences. We are particularly excited to announce SK Telecom‘s participation in this collaborative ecosystem where everybody wins. SK Telecom is a global leader in 5G which follows their rich tradition of innovation within their network, strategic partnerships and developer engagement. This new era is underway,” says Eric Braun, Chief Commercial Officer of MobiledgeX.

MobiledgeX and SK Telecom executives hold up their respective copies of a memorandum of understanding between the two companies to jointly develop mobile edge computing applications. (SK Telecom)

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MobiledgeX is focused on delivering developer-facing edge cloud services and bringing mobility to those services, dynamically placing application back-end as close to mobile devices as possible and removing them when not needed. MobiledgeX, Deutsche Telekom and Intelhave partnered with Telecom Infra Project (TIP) to form an Edge Application Developer project group (see here) to ensure the gained insights and supporting source code are available to all. This is a new opportunity for everyone presented as a consequence of $2 trillion of CAPEX investment in network infrastructure over the past 10 years and the virtualization of the network from the central offices to the towers.  MobiledgeX is building a marketplace of edge resources and services that will connect developers with the world’s largest mobile networks to power the next generation of applications and devices. MobiledgeX is an independent edge computing company founded by Deutsche Telekom and headquartered in Menlo Park, California.

References:

https://mobiledgex.com/press-releases/2018/12/12/sk-telecom-partners-with-mobiledgex

https://www.fiercetelecom.com/telecom/sk-telecom-and-mobiledgex-join-hands-mobile-edge-computing

Separately, SK Telecom said it will comply with the IoT Security Guidelines proposed by GSMA for the safe usage and expansion of IoT networks.

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1.   Ericsson video call over SK Telecom’s 5G test network:

Ericsson and SK Telecom have conducted a video call over the operator’s live 5G test network, the latest milestone in a long-running partnership.

On this occasion, the companies used 100 MHz of 3.5-GHz spectrum, marking the first time that so much spectrum in this band has been used in a field test. SK Telecom used Ericsson’s commercial radio equipment, based on the 5G New Radio (NR) standard. Ericsson also supplied a test device equipped with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon x50 5G modem. As well as a video call, SK Telecom also demonstrated streaming via a 5G data session.

As has been well documented, South Korea is pushing hard to be a frontrunner on 5G, which might explain Ericsson’s keen involvement with SK Telecom’s research and trials. The two companies have been at the forefront of testing out network slicing, where an access network is subdivided into virtual partitions, with the parameters of each one tailored to meet the requirements of specific services, from low-bandwidth massive IoT connectivity, to low-latency, high-throughput A/VR services. Ericsson and SK Telecom have also trialled multi-vehicular 5G trials in partnership with BMW.

Another explanation for Ericsson’s close involvement with SK Telecom might have something to do with Samsung. The Korean vendor missed the boat on 4G when it backed WiMAX instead of LTE, but it is making a concerted effort to not be left out of 5G. Last year, it unveiled its end-to-end 5G portfolio, and it has struck important partnerships and supply deals, including with SK Telecom, Telefonica, and Verizon.

With South Korea expected to be among the first movers when it comes to 5G commercialisation, Ericsson will want to make sure SK Telecom’s network is adorned with as much of its equipment as possible.

Alex Jinsung Choi, CTO and Head of Corporate R&D Center, SK Telecom, said:

“5G will offer much more than just faster data speeds. It will serve as a true enabler for a whole new variety of powerful services that deliver unprecedented value to customers. Today’s demonstration of 5G-based connected car technologies marks the very first step towards achieving fully autonomous driving in the upcoming era of 5G.”

The test environment was realized by using an Ericsson 5G field trial network. It consists of multiple radio transmission points on 28GHz frequency band to cover the entire track and one user equipment installed in every car. The trials showed consistent Gbps-level throughput with a few millisecond latency. Uninterrupted connectivity, using beam tracking and beam transfer across the different transmission points at speeds exceeding 100 kilometers per hour is also achieved. The performance shown enables multiple connected car use cases such as augmented and virtual reality, obstacle control and vehicle to vehicle communication, based on a system solution including radio and core network infrastructure from Ericsson.

Thomas Norén, Head of Product Area Network Products, Ericsson, said:

“Ericsson is working with leading operators and ecosystem players to drive the realization of 5G – both with today’s pre-standard field trials, and through standardization activities along with global standards bodies and industry groups. The trial takes a step closer to 5G technology and commercialization, especially for connected vehicle applications.”

The trial simultaneously implements new key 5G capabilities with multi-site, multi-transmission point, MU-MIMO, and with multiple devices operating in the millimeter wave frequency band. It demonstrates beam tracking and beam mobility between different 5G access points, at high mobility.

https://www.ericsson.com/en/news/2018/12/sk-telecom-qualcomm-and-ericsson-collaborate-on-5g

https://www.mobileworldlive.com/asia/asia-news/skt-makes-5g-video-call-on-3-5ghz-band/