Five years after the commercial launch of 5G, some people are still wondering whether fifth-generation networks have lived up to expectations. The answer is clear: 5G has changed everything.
Since Vodafone launched the first commercial 5G network in the Spanish market in June 2019, this technology has not stopped evolving and today it continues to strengthen its presence. However, after 5 years of hearing about 5G, it is worth asking when its full potential will be reached and how true were all the claims that anticipated a revolution at all levels after its arrival.
According to data published by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation, 5G network coverage in Spain exceeds 82% of the population, and it is also noteworthy that the connectivity gap between urban and rural areas “has been reduced by more than half, from 42 percentage points in 2018 to just 18 in 2022, bringing the goal of completely closing the digital divide by 2025 closer”. In particular, the boost to 5G has been noticed in the priority bands (New Radio) with coverage exceeding 58%, and among the objectives of the Spain Digital agenda is to achieve 5G mobile network coverage of 75% of the population by 2025.
Five years after the commercial launch of 5G, some people are still wondering whether fifth-generation networks have lived up to expectations. The answer is clear: 5G has changed everything.
But what is all this deployment for and who is taking advantage of it? Although 5G phones are already in millions of pockets, in the absence of sufficient commercial applications for the personal user market, there are still many uncertainties surrounding 5G, such as those related to issues such as security, privacy or the increased battery consumption that this technology requires. Therefore, we can say that the main beneficiaries are the business sector and the different industries.
5G technology
5G has already been tested and is being used in some cases to improve port logistics, the maintenance of Talgo trains or Balearia’s 5G services, to incorporate biometric access to train stations or to help the Civil Guard in its maintenance and security tasks.
The 5G network has also made it possible to broadcast and improve the experience at fairs, shows and mass events such as the April Fair, among others. It has also served to connect the elderly with their families and achieve better adherence to taking medication, to improve the tourist experience in museums and monuments, to improve health emergencies and reduce reaction times in natural disasters, to optimize agricultural and industrial production and harvesting processes or to improve the comprehensive management of the water cycle, among others.
Furthermore, 5G is acting as an enabler for other technologies and solutions, such as the Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence or private mobile networks, technologies that are making their way into large companies and allowing customers to protect their data and more easily control critical robots in factories, autonomous vehicles and healthcare systems, to name just a few examples. 5G technology provides the speed and low latency needed to run these services without downtime. In fact, according to a survey conducted by global research firm Omdia, private 5G networks are seen as a key driver of widespread digitalisation, from assembly plants to health monitoring and, together with advanced 5G connectivity, represent the “fourth wave” of the industrial revolution. In Spain, we already find significant examples of private 5G networks in industry, such as in the Álava Technology Park or in the Ford production plant in Valencia.
In short, the 5G network is already a reality with a significant impact on the economic and social development of the country. The city you walk through every day is more than likely to manage public services such as lighting or water quality thanks to IoT sensors connected to the network. Connected public transport vehicles improve their punctuality, safety and energy efficiency, and in the future video games and augmented reality capabilities and devices will reach the next level thanks to the processing capabilities of the network. 5G, in short, has changed everything, but all this is still just the beginning.