At the Technology Policy Institute Forum in Aspen, Colorado this week, Ericsson CEO Börje Ekholm made many comments about “The Future of Wireless & Global Connectivity.”  To begin with, he said it’s super critical for western nations, including the U.S., to increase their 5G Stand Alone (SA) network deployments.  5G network operators need 5G SA to take full advantage of the platform to support apps and services that are optimized for low latency, higher uplink prioritization and network slicing. “It’s hard to monetize something you don’t have,” Ekholm said. “The network has to be built for 5G SA.”

Ekholm’s 5G SA comments echo those of Magnus Ewerbring, Ericsson’s chief technology officer – Asia Pacific, who strongly asserted that 5G SA is the way for wireless network operators to monetize and differentiate their 5G networks. 

Ekholm noted that China has prioritized 5G SA and has more than 4 million base stations deployed, estimating that this represents about ten times what’s been deployed in the US. China has been able to monetize that by supporting advanced robotics and automation in tens of thousands of factories. China is “highly competitive,” has “enormous scale, domestically,” and has made 5G SA a priority, the Ericsson CEO said.  Western countries needs to take China’s 5G SA efforts “seriously” and invest more in their wireless infrastructure as it’s a competitive imperative. 

Status of 5G SA network deployments:

A recent Heavy Reading (now part of Omdia) operator survey found that 35% of respondents said they have deployed 5G SA, with 20% expecting to be live by year-end. Some 41% cited “new or better services” as the primary driver for 5G core investment.

After a very slow start during the past five years, Téral Research says the migration to 5G SA has increased.  Of the total 354 commercially available 5G public networks reported at the end of 1Q25, 74 are 5G SA –  up from 49 one year ago.  This growth is being driven by the success of fixed wireless access (FWA), a wider range of 5G SA-compatible devices, and the rise of voice over new radio (VoNR). Téral is also seeing increased adoption of private cloud for SA core deployments, with data sovereignty concerns shaping CSP strategies. Network slicing, which requires 5G SA, is moving from theory to practice—now extending to critical use cases like military applications.

3GPP URLC specifications are still not finalized and approved:

It should be noted that the 3GPP specifications for URLLC (Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communication) in the 5G SA core network and 5G NR access network are not considered 100% completed or finalized. URLLC relies on both the 5G NR (Radio Access Network) and the 5G Core network to achieve its goals. URLLC is vital for various industrial applications requiring real-time control and automation, such as the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), virtual reality, and autonomous vehicles. 

3GPP Release 16 introduced significant enhancements for URLLC in the 5G New Radio (NR) access and 5G Core network. While Release 16 was “frozen” in July 2022, work on URLLC enhancements, particularly in the Radio Access Network (RAN), was not fully completed. These enhancements are crucial for 3GPP NR to meet the ITU-R M.2410 minimum performance requirements for URLLC for ultra-high reliability and ultra low latency.

 3GPP Technical Specifications (TS) and Technical Reports (TR) become “official” when transposed into corresponding publications of the 3GPP Organizational Partner (like ETSI or ITU-R) or the body acting as publisher for the Partner. Once a Release is frozen (see definition in TR 21.900) and all work items completed, 3GPP specifications are officially transposed and published by the Organizational Partners, as a part of their standards series.

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Ekholm also said that strong western representation at ITU-R’s WRC-27 “is critically important.”  That’s because licensed spectrum is likewise critical for the next generation of automation, self-driving vehicles and AI applications that will require a “truly reliable” and low-latency network, he added.

“AI is the most fundamental technology we’ve seen so far,” he said. Ericsson has already been able to generate a 10% boost in spectrum efficiency using AI tools. While AI will no doubt erase some jobs, he’s also optimistic it will create new ones.  Like so many analysts, Ekholm expects  Gen AI to drive more traffic and new capabilities. “The criticality of the connectivity layer will become even more important,” he added.

References:

https://www.lightreading.com/5g/ericsson-ceo-calls-for-bigger-push-toward-5g-sa

https://www.tpiaspenforum.tech/agenda

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Téral Research: 5G SA core network deployments accelerate after a very slow start

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3GPP Release 16 5G NR Enhancements for URLLC in the RAN & URLLC in the 5G Core network