Advertisement
5G
TechPolicy

China targets 2 million installed 5G base stations this year, expanding world’s biggest next-generation mobile network, as 6G preparations push ahead

  • The country currently has 1.425 million installed 5G base stations that support more than 500 million 5G users nationwide
  • While China’s 5G mobile network is already the world’s biggest, MIIT head Xiao Yaqing said the existing number of base stations ‘is not enough’

Reading Time:2 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
4
China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom launched their commercial 5G services on the mainland in 2019. Photo: Shutterstock
Iris Deng
China will have 2 million installed 5G base stations this year to step up expansion of the country’s next-generation mobile network, while preparing for the development of the more advanced 6G wireless system, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT).
Advertisement
The Chinese mainland currently has 1.425 million installed 5G base stations that support more than 500 million 5G users nationwide, which makes it “the biggest network [of its kind] in the world”, MIIT minister Xiao Yaqing said on Tuesday in a press briefing on the sidelines of the annual “two sessions”.

“Moving forward, we will step up our efforts in base stations. What we have now is not enough,” Xiao said in the live-streamed event, adding that the government will accelerate support for advanced 5G applications.

He indicated that China will strive to maintain its leadership in 5G, while planning and laying the foundation for research and development on 6G technology.

Technicians of mobile network operator China Telecom set up a 5G base station near the Yellow River in Lanzhou, capital of northwestern Gansu province, on May 16, 2019. Photo: Reuters
Technicians of mobile network operator China Telecom set up a 5G base station near the Yellow River in Lanzhou, capital of northwestern Gansu province, on May 16, 2019. Photo: Reuters
While most people see 5G as a technical upgrade to 4G, the next-generation wireless system is expected to be a major building block of the fourth industrial revolution, also known as Industry 4.0, that would accelerate the automation of traditional industries. 5G builds upon 4G by providing a peak data rate of up to 20 gigabits per second and a faster average user experience of 100 megabits per second, compared with about 10Mbps in the previous generation.
Advertisement

6G represents the mobile network technology that will succeed 5G, which is still being rolled out in many countries. China, with the world’s biggest internet population and largest smartphone market, has already deployed the biggest 5G mobile infrastructure in the industry.

Advertisement