Society

SoftBank and KDDI to pump $38bn into 5G

Nov 05 (Nikkei) - Two of Japan's major mobile carriers, SoftBank and KDDI, plan to invest a total of $38 billion into fifth-generation wireless networks in Japan over the next decade, Nikkei has learned, as the country looks to play catch-up in deploying the ultrafast technology.

Shifting to a new generational wireless standard involves significant capital investment. 5G technology is expected to affect a wide range of industries from internet services to the automotive sector, bolstering Japan's economy as a whole in coming years.

SoftBank recently decided to spend 2 trillion ($19 billion) yen to set up a 5G network that spans 350,000 base stations in 10 years, becoming the first Japanese telecommunications company to reveal a long-term network strategy.

As a first step, the company will expand to 50,000 base stations by March 2022 from less than 10,000 currently, focusing on setting up 5G service in densely populated areas. It aims to have 200,000 base stations by around 2025, ensuring constant 5G access for all of its mobile users nationwide.

Ultimately, SoftBank aims to turn 5G into the standard for business activities as well. 5G networks allow the transfer of large amounts of data to multiple devices with minimal lag time. By setting up an extensive web of base stations, SoftBank will encourage more companies to switch over to 5G and promote new developments in data-intensive fields like the Internet of Things, telemedicine and self-driving cars.

Meanwhile, rival KDDI will invest 2 trillion yen over the next 10 years into 5G and advanced sixth-generation technology, a push that includes the goal of reaching 50,000 5G base stations by March 2022

Japan's two other major mobile carriers, NTT Docomo and Rakuten, are expected to build more stations as well.

The world has adopted new mobile network technology roughly once every decade since first-generation wireless, used by devices like car phones, was introduced in the 1980s. Investment into 4G peaked in 2013 to 2014, when then Japan's top three mobile carriers poured a combined 1.8 trillion yen into the technology in each of those years, according to the Nikkei Economic Electronic Databank System. Mobile-related investments have been picking up against since 2019 with the rise of 5G.

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