PRESS: Russia can unroll 5G connection in 5 big cities in 2022

MOSCOW, Jul 3 (PRIME) -- 5G technology can appear in five Russian big cities in 2022 with the first pilot project to be launched in July–September 2019 and frequencies become available for operators in October–December 2020, business daily Vedomosti reported on Monday, quoiting a digital economy programme draft.

A concept of 5G development in the cities will be completed until the end of 2017, according to the program draft that will be unveiled on Wednesday by the council for strategic development and priority projects of President Vladimir Putin, who ordered the government to deliberate on the initiative by July 1.

The 5G standard carries data at a speed of more than 10 gigabits per second, but it requires installation of base stations at a closer distance than its predecessors raising costs.

A frequency range for the new standard has not been allocated yet. The E.U. will develop 5G in a 694–790 megahertz range. All European mobile operators will get access to the range by June 30, 2020, but the Europeans are afraid of being behind China, South Korea, and Japan, which invest lavishly in 5G. South Korea wants to create a 5G network by the 2018 Winter Olympics, which it hosts.

In Russia, mobile giants MegaFon and MTS held first tests of 5G. MegaFon used the temporarily allocated band of 4.5 gigahertz, and MTS – 4.65–4.85 gigahertz.

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