The fact that 5G networks are programmable has several important implications for businesses. In simple terms, the network became user centric. It is designed to deliver assured service quality along with the ability to scale itself based on the user requirements. It is built on programmable networks, making it revolutionary, and not only evolutionary. These `pipes’, once laid, could not be re-configured. Note that until the arrival of 4G/LTE, the emphasis was on building fatter `pipes’ and adding to capacity for a growing subscriber base and their hunger for data. Now we have the ultra-reliable, low latency 5G networks turning up with mandated peak data rates of 20Gbps downlink and 10Gbps uplink with a user experience data rate guarantee of 100 Mbps. 4G was to support peak downlink data rate of 1Gbps and uplink data rate of 500Mbps. More recently it evolved to 4G/LTE with true broadband. It went from 2G that offered SMS to GPRS then Edge and 3G supporting a maximum rate of 2Mbps for stationary and 348Kbps for mobile subscribers. Mobile technology has been through steady evolution. How can your business prepare to raise new competitive barriers and build fresh revenue streams by re-imagining its applications at the hands of 5G? But the real reason for the excitement is because 5G is the first step towards building intelligent connectivity-a fact that spells new business opportunities around smart farms, factories and cities. Of course, some of the expected growth can be attributed to the 5G-fueled increase in mobile subscribers (700 million new mobile subscribers are expected to be added by 2025) ³.

With 5G, they will generate 4.8% of global GDP by 2023, which translates to $4.8 trillion in economic value ². The latest GSMA report says that mobile services generated 4.6% of global GDP in 2018 or they added $3.9 trillion in economic value. As of May 2019, 20 mobile carriers had rolled out 5G networks across 294 global locations ¹.

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