Gartner: Market Guide for 3GPP “5G New Radio (NR)” Infrastructure
Editor’s Note:
Most mobile 5G deployments to date are based on 3GPP Release 15 “5G NR” or “NR”in the data plane and Non Stand Alone (NSA), with LTE for everything else (i.e. control plane/signalling, mobile packet core, network management, etc). 3GPP Release 16 will hopefully add ultra low latency, ultra high reliability to the 5G NR data plane. Equally important will be the 5G systems architecture-phase 2 that will be specified in Release 16. That spec includes a 5G mobile packet core (5GC) which is a forklift upgrade from the 4G-LTE Evolved Packet Core (EPC). It remains to be seen which ITU study group will standardized 5GC when 3GPP Release 16 is completed in late June 2020.
From the paper titled Narrowband Internet of Things 5G Performance published in 2019 IEEE 90th Vehicular Technology Conference (VTC2019-Fall):
5G NR supports new frequency bands ranging all the way up to 52.6 GHz. These new frequency bands make large system bandwidths available that are needed to improve the mobile broadband data rates beyond what LTE can offer.
NR also supports a reduced latency by means of reduced transmission time intervals and shortened device processing times compared to LTE. To provide high reliability, NR supports low code rates and a high level of redundancy.
In the initial phase of the transition from 4G to 5G, NR is expected to be a complement to both LTE and NB-IoT, providing enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) and critical IoT services. The past industrial practice suggests that the mobile network operators will stepwise re-farm parts of its LTE spectrum for enabling NR. Since NR supports a new range of frequency bands, an attractive alternative approach is to deploy NR in a set of new rather than existing bands. 3GPP Release 15 allows NR to connect to the EPC to support a seamless transition from LTE to NR.
The NR traffic volumes will eventually motivate a full refarming of the LTE MBB spectrum to NR. The longevity of NB-IoT devices is however expected to make NB-IoT a natural component within the 5G echo-system. For this reason, NR supports reservation of radio resources to enable LTE operation including NB-IoT, within an NR carrier. This allows NB-IoT to add NR in-band operation to its list of supported deployment options. Since both NR and NB-IoT employ an OFDM based modulation with support for 15-kHz subcarrier numerology, in the downlink (DL) true interference-free orthogonality can be achieved without configuration of guard-bands between the two systems.
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From Gartner report published Dec 16, 2019:
By Peter Liu, Sylvain Fabre, Kosei Takiishi
Introduction:
As communications service providers move forward with 5G commercialization, New Radio infrastructure investment is prioritized and crucial for 5G rollout success. We analyze the market direction and the product strategies of equipment vendors to help guide product managers in CSPs.
By 2021, investments in 5G NR network infrastructure will account for 19% of the total wireless infrastructure revenue of communications service providers (CSPs), elevated from 6% in 2019.
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Support for new subcarrier spacing
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Massive multiple input/multiple output (MIMO)/beamforming
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Enhanced scheduling by hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ)
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Cyclic-prefix orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (CP-OFDM) and discrete fourier transform spread orthogonal frequency-division multiple access (DFTS-OFDM)
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Bandwidth part (BWP) and carrier aggregation (CA)
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New Radio spectrum
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Optimized orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM)
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Adaptive beamforming
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Massive MIMO
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Spectrum sharing
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Unified design across frequencies
Key Findings:
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The deployment of 5G New Radio (NR) products will accelerate in 2020, through high total cost of ownership (TCO), absence of “killer application,” unmatured millimeter wave ecosystem and inexpensive device availability that prevent rapid growth in capital investment.
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Most of current commercial 5G sub-6 gigahertz (GHz) communications service providers (CSPs) also start building their multiband strategy which is in line with their business strategy; for example, sub-1GHz for coverage enhancement and millimeter wave for capacity.
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Initial 5G deployment was based on non-stand-alone (NSA) architecture which couples the Long Term Evolution (LTE) with 5G NR radio layers to accelerate time to market and reduce cost. This coexistence will last for many years, though specific CSPs may move toward stand-alone (SA) deployment as early as 2020.
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Open radio access network (RAN) and virtualized RAN (vRAN) have seen an increase in attention after Rakuten Mobile announced its commercial adoption in LTE. However, fragmented standards, incumbent vendor support, technology immaturity and poor fiber availability continue to hamper its success.
Market Description
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Baseband unit capacity
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Portfolio broadness
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Deployment feasibility
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Technology evolution
Recommendations for 5G Communications Service Providers (CSPs):
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Build a step-wise 5G NR implementation strategy by initially focusing on best use of existing infrastructure investment, then simplifying the deployment in order to reduce the time to market and minimize risk.
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Develop spectrum strategies based on business focus, frequencies available as well as ecosystem maturity. Choose the vendors that have preferred radio spectrum support with combinations of spectrum reframing and sharing.
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Select the 5G NR solution by accessing a vendor’s capabilities of interworking with existing 4G/LTE networks and its ability to provide a high degree of continuity and seamless experience for users. In addition, explore a seamless software upgrade path to enable 5G SA evolution.
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Build an end-to-end understanding of the Open Radio Access Network (O-RAN) impact on network, operations, performance and procurement by conducting a proof of concept (POC)/pilot.
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Acronym Key and Glossary Terms
2G |
second generation
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3G |
third generation
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3GPP |
Third Generation Partnership Project
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4G |
fourth generation
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5G |
fifth generation
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AAU |
Active Antenna Unit
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AI |
artificial intelligence
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AR |
augmented reality
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ASIC |
application-specific integrated circuit
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BBU |
baseband unit
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BWP |
bandwidth part
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C-RAN |
cloud radio access network
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CA |
carrier aggregation
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capex |
capital expenditure
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CBRS |
Citizens Broadband Radio Service
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CoMP |
coordinated multipoint
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CP-OFDM |
cyclic-prefix orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing
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CPE |
customer premises equipment
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CSP |
communications service provider
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CU |
centralized unit
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DAFE |
Digital/Analog Front End
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DFTS-OFDM |
discrete fourier transform spread orthogonal frequency-division multiple access
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DIS |
digital indoor system
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DL |
downlink
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DU |
distributed unit
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eCPRI |
enhanced Common Public Radio Interface
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eMBB |
enhanced mobile broadband
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EPC |
Evolved Packet Core
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FDD |
frequency division duplex
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FH |
fronthaul
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FWA |
fixed wireless access
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Gbps |
gigabits per second
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GHz |
gigahertz
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gNB |
Next Generation Node B
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HARQ |
hybrid automatic repeat request
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I&O |
infrastructure and operations
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IBW |
instantaneous bandwidth (ZTE)
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IC |
integrated circuit
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ICT |
information and communication technology
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IMT-2020 |
International Mobile Telecommunications-2020
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IoT |
Internet of Things
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ITU-R |
International Telecommunication Union Radiocommunication Sector
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LAA |
Licensed Assisted Access
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LTE |
Long Term Evolution
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LTE-V |
LTE Vehicle
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MAA |
Multiple Input/Multiple Output Adaptive Antenna
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MHz |
megahertz
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ML |
machine learning
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MIMO |
multiple input/multiple output
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mMTC |
Massive Machine Type Communications
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mmWave |
millimeter wave (frequencies above 24GHz)
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MOCN |
multioperator core network
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MORAN |
multicarrier radio access network
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MOS |
Multi-Operator Servers (Mavenir)
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NFV |
network function virtualization
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NR |
New Radio
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NSA |
non-stand-alone
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O-RAN |
Open Radio Access Network
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OBW |
occupied bandwidth
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OEM |
original equipment manufacturer
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OFDM |
orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing
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opex |
operating expenditure
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POC |
proof of concept
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PRB |
physical resource blocks
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QAM |
quadrature amplitude modulation
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R&D |
research and development
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RAN |
radio access network
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RAT |
Radio Access Technology
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RIC |
RAN Intelligent Controller (Nokia)
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RF |
radio frequency
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RFIC |
Radio Frequency Integrated Circuit
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RRU |
remote radio unit
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RU |
radio unit
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SA |
stand-alone
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SDN |
software-defined network
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SDR |
software-defined radio
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SON |
self-organizing network
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Sub-1GHz |
Low-band frequencies are those at 600MHz, 800MHz, and 900MHz.
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Sub-6GHz |
Frequencies under 6GHz but above the low-band frequencies (2.5GHz, 3.5GHz, and 3.7GHz to 4.2GHz).
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SUL |
Supplementary Uplink
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TCO |
total cost of ownership
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TD-LTE |
Time Division-Long Term Evolution
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TDD |
time division duplex
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TRX |
Transceiver/Receiver
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UBR |
Ultra Broadband RRU (ZTE)
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UL |
uplink
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URLLC |
ultrareliable and low-latency communications
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VR |
virtual reality
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vRAN |
virtualized radio access network
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WG2 |
Work Group 2
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WG3 |
Work Group 3
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Gartner surveys
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CSP and vendor briefings, plus discussions
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Associated Gartner research
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Gartner market forecasts
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Gartner client discussions
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References- related Gartner posts:
Gartner: Telecom at the Edge + Distributed Cloud in 3 Stages
Gartner Group Innovation & Insight: Cutting Through the 5G Hype
4 thoughts on “Gartner: Market Guide for 3GPP “5G New Radio (NR)” Infrastructure”
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Are 3GPP and ITU now irrelevant for 5G specs?
The 5G Future Forum will collaborate to develop interoperable 5G specifications across key geographic regions, including the Americas, Asia-Pacific and Europe. The Forum’s founding members are América Móvil, KT, Rogers, Telstra, Verizon and Vodafone.
The 5G Future Forum will focus on the creation of uniform interoperability specifications to improve speed to market for developers and multinational enterprises working on 5G-enabled solutions. In addition, Forum participants will develop public and private marketplaces to enhance developer and customer access to 5G, and will share global best practices in technology deployment.
https://www.verizon.com/about/news/global-5g-leaders-create-future-forum
Japan is reportedly working on its 6G strategy for 2030, in spite of slow 5G roll out
There are reports that Japan is already looking beyond 5G to draw up plans for “post-5G” technology by 2030. Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications plans to create a joint government–civilian research society this January. The panel will focus on policy, technology and potential use cases. Local media suggests that the first meeting could take place as early as next Monday. Key players, such as NTT and Toshiba, will reportedly also be invited to share their views on 6G’s potential and related policies in June. As always, speculation is rife about the potential of this future technology, with some suggesting that it could be ten times faster than 5G. Other benefits are likely to include the ability to smoothly connect multiple devices simultaneously, increased safety measures, and reduced power consumption. Last year, the Japanese government pledged 220 billion yen (~$2 billion) to encourage private sector research in 6G technology. “The smooth introduction of standards for next-generation wireless communications networks is indispensable to boosting Japan’s international competitiveness,” said Japan’s communications minister Sanae Takaichi. This focus on 6G may come as something of a surprise to those who note that Japan’s 5G rollout has not been as rapid its local neighbours, China and South Korea, which both launched the technology last year. Japan, on the other hand, has a plan to launch so-called “local 5G” this spring, with the infrastructure to be installed in some specific areas, such as selected hospitals and factories. NTT is also reportedly planning to launch a 5G video-streaming service in March. Japan is not the first country to get the ball rolling with 6G development. Finland is one country notably already developing the technology – the University of Oulu published what has been described as 6G’s first white paper in September – and China announced its 6G ambitions just days after three of its mobile operators launched 5G last November. With the global focus on the 5G race, it is easy to forget that technology is a continuum, constantly evolving and inching ever closer redefining itself. The starting gun for the 6G race has already been fired and Japan, for one, is looking for a place on the podium.
https://www.totaltele.com/504691/Japan-already-developing-a-plan-for-6G
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Excellent Qualcomm interview on state of 3GPP release 16. Expect Rel 16 compatible products in 2022!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xa0mmFQPZGE&feature=youtu.be
Here’s an article about 5G in Indonesia (must be translated:
5G will change the word and we move forward to the next level. Let learn about 5G and lets change the world