An EU initiative, Horizon 2020, is looking into the possibility of a more standardized roll-out of 5G across the EU and is working with universities as well as network operators for a solution to bring us in line with advances from the US and Asia.
Assuming that the UK will be one of the 19 projects, it will be interesting to see whether the objective of not compromising innovation by avoiding upgrading existing network infrastructure is realistic or whether the major operators will pull rank.
If the EU initiative is successful, intervention on this scale could have a drastic effect on the way mobile operators compete, especially if they are all using the same technology. Only time will tell.
Europe is keen to gain back the ground lost to Asia and the United States during the LTE generation, with the European Union joining telcos in developing the road to 5G. Operators facing network deficit as demand outstrips supply, predicts Bell Labs The continent's appetite for the battle was questioned by Ericsson's CTO at Mobile World Congress in February, when he claimed not enough was being done. The EU's Horizon 2020 initiative is an attempt to show that Ulf Ewaldsson's claims were incorrect. It is funding 19 projects across the continent, tasked with 5G research.
http://mobileeurope.co.uk/news-analysis/with-5g-on-the-horizon-eu-funds-selfnet-to-set-agenda
unknownx500
