MTN’s 5G a milestone in SA’s digital journey

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Huawei 5G

by SAVIOUS KWINIKA
JOHANNESBURG, (CAJ News) – THE historic launch of fifth-generation mobile network (5G) in South Africa has been hailed as a boost to the country’s transition to a digital economy.

MTN SA has launched the network, which experts said would also support people working remotely during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

MTN successfully launched its superfast 5G next-generation mobile network across major cities in South Africa, including Bloemfontein, Cape Town, Johannesburg and Port Elizabeth.

“This is expected to greatly support people working remotely during this era of social distancing caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and will boost South Africa’s transition to a digital economy,” said Huawei Chief Executive Officer, Spawn Fan.

MTN’s 5G deployment in Johannesburg uses industry-leading Huawei Massive MIMO. This technology guarantees the user experience for services that require high bandwidths such as 4K video, multi-angle video, and AR/VR services, and provide broadband services for families and small and medium enterprises.

Leveraging on multiple bands, MTN deployed 5G in 2.1GHz using Dynamic Spectrum Sharing (DSS), 3.5GHz and 28GHz bands. 3.5 GHz, known as C-band, is the global mainstream spectrum for 5G deployment, and Massive MIMO is the mainstream product form.

To enable wider 5G coverage, MTN uses dynamic spectrum sharing between 4G and 5G in the 2.1 GHz band.

The 2.1 GHz spectrum can provide wider coverage due to its lower frequency spectrum characteristics.

Huawei’s DSS technology enables operators to provide 5G services by upgrading existing 4G base stations to 5G without changing antennas and radio units.

Giovanni Chiarelli, MTN South AfricaChief Technology Innovation Officer, said 5G technology was also expected to contribute significantly to the country’s economy and play a role in the realisation of

South Africa’s digital transformation goals.

“An excellent 5G network will enable us to provide more exciting services and to offer the ultimate service experience to MTN customers,” Chiarelli said.

– CAJ News

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