Will 5G will be a threat to fixed line broadband and Ethernet connectivity for SME’s?
We think so!
5G coverage within the UK is on the horizon, with a theoretical throughput of 10Gbs and latency of 1-2ms once the network is fully deployed and mature, 5G will have a greatly enhanced reliability and network reach compared to 4G. Which begs the question – will this cause people to ditch their fixed line service? We certainly think so!
In simplistic terms think about your old fixed line telephone at home. I personally haven’t used it for over 8 years, in fact, I no longer even know what the number is. I use my mobile for all communications. The only use I have for it is to run my FTTC line, which in fact is still slower than the 4G speeds I get!
What a pain WiFi networks can be as well, there is always a not spot somewhere in the house where I have had to add in an additional hotspot or the access point needs a reboot, yet I switch to 4G on my phone and instantly have a connection! I’m sure I am not the only one who experiences this on a daily basis?
When it comes to moving home or business premises, fixed line also causes issues. With broadband you need to ensure you can get the same service, that your provider cancels the old service, moves all the credentials across and installs it on time! What’s more, you have to pay a new connection fee and ensure they don’t bill you twice!
With Fibre Ethernet it’s just as hard, you will pay a heavy re-connection fee if you are within contract, you have to hope the site survey doesn’t show any excess construction costs and then wait a minimum of 35 days for delivery!
With 5G and mobile broadband, these issues disappear. When it comes to moving premises, simply unplug your mobile router #cradlepoint and plug it straight in at the new premises, moving all your IP addresses and configuration with you! No problems and no stress; it really will be that easy.
In addition, all of a sudden businesses who have struggled for years with sub-standard broadband speeds now have access to theoretical speeds of 10Gbs, EE recently concluded 5G tests where they saw an average of 2.8Gbs and at the very least 5G is predicted to operate at 20 times the speed of 4G. 5G will run at sub 5m/s latency (the average fixed line broadband currently has a latency of approximately 15m/s) – which makes it a reliable business solution to run important services that businesses depend on – be it voice, remote desktop or cloud services; 5G opens up all of these doors.
Thinking further into the future where fleets of autonomous drones are delivering our weekly shopping, and we click on an app for a driverless car to take us to work, near real-time high-speed 5G communications will revolutionise everything we do.
With the developments of SD-WAN #juniper #cradlepoint #fortinet, businesses will be able to connect remote offices, workers and devices into a secure network that runs as fast as a local area network yet is more mobile and dynamic than before. Businesses will be able to track employee productivity via the 5G network, check salespeople have completed their meeting targets or engineers have turned up to site on time. We already have the technology for mobile device management #soti but 5G will just push this type of technology further.
There will still be a place for fixed line in connecting core parts of the Internet and datacentres but will it be the best solution for dynamic, mobile businesses?
5G is just the start. it’s predicted that in 10 to 15 years we may be on a 6G network, with speeds in the region of 1Tbs, which begs the questions; where will we be then? Perhaps we will be teleporting ourselves across continents in real time and we realise that the universe is actually generated by a quantum computer. When we hit these speeds perhaps the world will disappear into a supermassive black hole, but at least all of our data will be backed up at the event horizon waiting for someone to press reboot?
Ok, I may have gone off into the questions of the universe, but having been in this industry since 1999 I have seen and been through the various stages of the Internet revolution and seen the transformation it has made to the way we live and work. I truly believe 5G will have the biggest impact we’ve ever seen. From the simple things of no longer having to wait for fibre installation to the transformation 5G will have on new technologies and IoT, 5G is going to change the way we communicate forever.
At Stream, we are ready for the 5G revolution. Our mobile connectivity offering via our Cascade portal allows our customers to instantly order and provision their own mobile broadband and Ethernet services with fixed IP addresses. Our SD-WAN solutions and network connect mobile, dynamic business, securely, and efficiently to their sites, workers and our flexible cloud platform.
We want our partners and customers to enjoy the best in connectivity, and as soon as 5G arrives, it will not only be the best mobile connection we’ve ever seen, it could well revolutionise the way business and consumers interact like never before.
Get ready for the revolution.