China officially launched commercial 5G services on Thursday, shutting down previous forecasts that the launch will not come this year. The commercialization of high-speed connections in the country is also seen as a threat to U.S. rival Apple.
According to China Daily, the country is looking at expanding its 5G base with over 130,000 5G base stations by the end of this year. The expansion is expected to help cover network users who will transition to the new speed option.
China's telecoms industry big three, China Telecom, China Mobile, and China Unicom, all rolled out their 5G data plans for interested consumers. Speed and data will both be gauged for services fees.
Th world's second-largest economy is recognized as a leader in 5G technology as more and more enterprises as well as individual consumers expressing interest for the new services and offers under the new network.
Deputy director of the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, Wang Zhiqin, revealed that the country will keep expanding its 5G offers and a "large-scale" construction for the network will kick off next year.
Among the government's partners in building 5G bases in China's 5G era is Qualcomm China. Chairman of the U.S. chip giant's unit in the country said they firm will continue to cooperate with Chinese counterparts in providing services for industries and consumers.
While Chinese carriers and smartphone brands are rejoicing over their country's apparent lead in the 5G revolution, some industry analysts noted that China's rise in technological advancement may hurt U.S. tech company Apple.
If Chinese phones can provide the high-speed services that 5G has to offer, Apple iPhones may no longer be as popular as they used to be in the massive Chinese market, industry analysts argued.
Furthermore, it is unclear when the United States will roll out its own commercialized 5G network. Unless the country catches up, it remains to be seen whether iPhones will have the service anytime soon.
Canalys research analyst Louis Liu pointed out that China's 5G drive will pose a clear challenge to the U.S. tech giant since its Chinese counterparts are expected to pursue aggressive promotions around the network within the coming months.
Meanwhile, talks about Huawei's role in China's 5G rollout have been rife since Thursday, BBC reported. The Chinese tech giant offered a lot of equipment to supply the network, while the company has also been in talks with other countries for their own networks.
Huawei has received extreme criticism from the U.S. government due to alleged security risks within its equipment. The company has since denied all claims and has yet to see its U.S. ban lifted.
