Ericsson’s second annual 5G Readiness Assessment has found a telecommunications industry moving quickly to prepare for the next generation of mobile communications technology.

The report is based primarily on surveys of “executives in either technical or strategic/business areas from a broad, global, cross-section of the telecom industry.” Last year, the majority of respondents reported being either in the Initial Planning (22 percent) or Development (34 percent) stages of 5G activities, with only 32 percent having started Trials. That has shifted dramatically, with a huge majority – 78 percent – now reporting that they’re in the Trials phase in 2017.

What has these telecommunications professionals so excited about 5G? Most – 82 percent – cited “multi-user massive MIMO”, an aspect of 5G that essentially allows a large number of data transmissions over the same time and frequency resources; while 71 percent also pointed to Device-to-Device Connection as one of the Essential Features of 5G, and Network Security, Virtualized Network Functions, and Network Slicing all tied for third at 68 percent. As for which industries are expected to see the biggest 5G applications, Media and Entertainment came out on top with 69 percent choosing it as one of their top three, while the Automotive sector came in second at 59 percent, pointing to the accelerating smart car market.

Looking to the potential revenues from all of these 5G activities, Ericsson says that higher rates for consumers are the least popular option among respondents, with 64 percent agreeing “that consumers are simply tapped out.” But respondents think “IoT will play a major role (83 percent) and that third-party collaboration will be an essential element (77 percent)” when it comes to reaping the revenue rewards of 5G. That points to a healthy, interconnected device ecosystem, and much better experiences for consumers with no huge hits to their wallets.

Source: 5G Readiness Survey 2017