Easy as one, two, three! How do we build the ultimate mobile broadband network?

Cloud computing, the Internet of Things and the growing popularity of Smartphones and tablets mean our mobile broadband networks have never been closer to breaking point, in terms of both capacity and speed. With even more new technologies and trends arriving on the market, action must be taken, which is why – as Huawei’s sixth and largest ever Global Mobile Broadband Forum drew to a close – experts delved deeper into what it is that makes an excellent mobile broadband network and how to achieve it. 

 

The first step, according to Huawei’s Wireless Network PL President David Wang, who closed the two-day conferenc e with a closer inspection of Huawei’s Mobile Broadband 2020 vision, is to connect the unconnected. In developing regions, like Africa, Huawei predicts there will be around 40 per cent of users who remain unconnected, despite current figures estimating there are around 2.7 billion people using mobile broadband. Referring to the Mobile Resource Index – which multiplies available spectrum and site availability and divides that by population – Wang described the difference in mobile broadband access as very different across counties, with Japan coming out top and Kenya at the bottom. 

 

“This is the new digital divide because the resources you have available in different countries are very different and we absolutely need to build bridges,” said Wang. “This is our social responsibility and we need to take action together to finish this job.”

 

Considering exactly what action needs to be taken, Wang said the primary factor was for local regulators to allocate more spectrum at a reasonable cost in the countries it is most needed. 

 

Creating a better user experience is the next step in achieving the ultimate mobile broadband network, said Wang. This involves a number of elements – speed, latency, content quality, the device and capacity. 

 

“In the coming years there will be more and more applications using the mobile broadband network,” continued Wang “The first is video and although you can also watch this on a fixed network, the mobile network offers the advantage of mobility and freedom which is why, according to data from Flurry Analytics and Youku, more than half of people spend more time watching video on their mobiles, rather than using a fixed network. Video already accounts for 70 to 80 per cent of all mobile broadband traffic and th is is set to increase further in the future so we really need to prepare our networks to deal with this medium.” 

 

Virtual reality, cloud computing, the Internet of Things (IoT) and artificial intelligence were the other new applications mentioned by Wang which will begin to use the mobile broadband network more and more in the near- to long-term future. In regards to the latter, Wang referred to Pepper the Robot – a machine which can interact with humans – as an example, while Huawei also showcased similar devices in the exhibition part of its Global Mobile Broadband Forum event. 

 

In order to deal with all of these new applications and deliver an improved user experience, Huawei’s Mobile Broadband 2020 vision sets out the aim of achieving speeds of at least one gigabit per second. 

 

“This will be a big challenge but if we want to make all these trends part of everyday life the mobile broadband network has to offer the same sorts of speeds a modem on a fixed network offers,” added Wang. 

 

When it comes to achieving this, continued Wang, expanding mobile broadband sites will be key.

 

“Adding sites can be very costly so operators should start by looking at enhancing the capability of existing sites and when that is achieved they should think about how they can add sites,” said Wang. “Some of our customers are already achieving this through a range of our solutions, including Blade Site, Easy Macro and Active Antenna site so this is action that operators can take right now in order to enable our future mobile broadband network.” 

 

Technology for indoor mobile broadband traffic and Huawei’s 4.5G offering to improve the efficiency of spectrum available today were also put forward by Wang as examples of how operators can already improve the network. 

 

“This represents the first steps toward 5G,” added Wang. “Network Functions Virtualisation (NFV) and Software Defined Networking (SDN) are also becoming more and more popular, redefining the network architecture via virtualisation and bringing benefits like increased agility.”

 

Wang also revealed that at Mobile World Congress 2016, Huawei will unveil its first product to implement network slicing. 

 

In addition to technology, Wang went on, different business models are also required, with operators needing to move from a Business-to-Consumer (B2C) approach to a Business-to-Business (B2B) model.

 

Wang’s third and final step to the ultimate mobile broadband network took the around 800 delegates who attended the Global mobile Broadband Forum back to IoT – specifically, cellular IoT (C-IoT). 

 

“Our future is a smart society; by 2020 there will be 980 million IoT connections – and this is a conservative figure,” said Wang. “The first step in achieving this is to connect all the different things together. Without that, there will be no communication and no intelligence. If we don’t take action right now we will not achieve it but if we take action right now, as an industry, we can achieve this and maybe more. Personally, I think one billon IoT connections on the cellular network by 2020 is a more realistic target.” 

 

In terms of creating C-IoT, continued Wang, the network requirements the same as enabling a better user experience but there is another area which needs major work in order to enable the trend to its full potential – standards. 

 

Here, Wang cited Narrow Band IoT as an example of what is already being done, with V odafone being among operators to collaborate with the company and commercially trial the technology. TMobile, Deutsche Telecom and Telecom Italia have also collaborated with Huawei.

 

“These operators are visionary and are driving forward our future,” said Wang. “Other operators doing the same will be key as we move forward. There is no point developing the technologies and the skills if we can’t apply it in a truly ubiquitous way.”

 

Huawei’s target is to make Narrow Band IoT ready by mid-2016. Alongside this, use cases will be very important, with a number of telcos and representatives from other industries working with Huawei to provide these in order to drive the ecosystem to be ready for IoT.

 

While the future is difficult to predict, our past and our present suggests the mobile broadband network will certainly face unprecedented demand in the future. Huawei’s Mobile Broadband 2020 vision sets out the aims that need to be met in order to facilities this, with connecting the unconnected, improving the user experience and C-IoT being among the top priorities.

 

“We hope our whole industry – not only telcos but all those which are relevant – will really club together to achieve this vision,” concluded Wang. “Let’s take action right now, work hard, define our future and reach it through the Mobile Broadband 2020 vision.”