5G is coming more quickly than we think: Intel’s Jayne Stancavage

By ITU News

Fifth-generation mobile technology (5G) promises to offer a wide range of benefits for individuals, businesses, and society at large. It is also arriving more quickly than many expect, which means it’s an important time for serious conversations about appropriate 5G policies.

That was one of the key messages of Jayne Stancavage, Global Executive Director of Communications Policy for Intel Corporation, at the ITU’s Global Symposium of Regulators (GSR) last week.

Stancavage explains the progress and potential of 5G in a video interview with ITU.

“Normally, there’s quite a lag time between the initial ideas until we actually see deployments,” she says. “Here, we see that at a really abbreviated timescale, with commercial deployments starting as early as this year, which is incredibly fast when you consider when we were first talking about even considering millimeter wave.”

5G developments must build on previous advancements in 4G that improved the lives of people around the world, she says.

“5G really offers the possibility of transforming our lives,” she says. “Just like the cellphone and smartphone revolution change with 4G and we have all these innovations that have happened that have really enriched the lives of humans everywhere, what we see now with 5G is the possibility of transforming that type of innovation across a wide variety of industries.”

For consumers, that will mean advantages of technologies including fixed wireless access and enhanced mobile broadband, as well as possible implications for healthcare and education, she says.

“With the right structure in place, we can really get those benefits to our society.”

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The timeline for realizing these advantages will depend on how each country prioritizes 5G development, Stancavage explains. To that end, the discussions at GSR around what’s coming up in 5G, how to enable it, and what needs to be done in the future are important, she says. “Those are the conversations that need to happen so that regulators and industry can figure out a way forward.” As part of these efforts, Stancavage says Intel will continue to engage in dialogue around possible policies and position itself at the “core of the 5G revolution.” “We’re very excited about where we are both from the computing side and the connectivity side,” she says, adding “we see this as being a leader and an engine for this digital transformation.”

Source: https://news.itu.int/5g-gsr-jayne-stancavage/