Singapore's defence agency taps Singtel for network slicingSingapore's defence agency taps Singtel for network slicing

Under an agreement with the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) and HTX (Home Team Science and Technology Agency) – which are agencies within the ministries of Defence and Home Affairs respectively – Singtel will allocate island-wide 5G network resources that will serve as a foundation for various security-related applications.

These include enhanced situational awareness and response, and command and control operations, in addition to accelerated threat detection and incident response.

According to the Singapore incumbent, this translates to things like autonomous vehicles; robotics and artificial intelligence; and the ability to analyse large data sets quickly and securely – all of which should make for faster and better decision making by first responders.

Singtel hasn't shared the precise configuration and number of slices it will deploy, only that it will provide reliable, high-bandwidth and low-latency connectivity.

"As a homegrown technology company, our nation's security is paramount to us. The threat landscape is growing increasingly more complex and cross-border in nature," said Ng Tian Chong, CEO of Singtel's domestic operation. "With Singtel's 5G network capabilities, security agencies will be able to conduct their operations with high precision, imperative to safeguarding and ensuring the continuous success of Singapore."

The agreement follows on from a trial in which DSTA and HTX made use of network slicing on Singtel's 5G network to transmit video and enable autonomous control of unmanned vehicles and drones. The trial took place at the Sentosa resort island in July last year.

"DSTA is constantly exploring and harnessing new technologies to strengthen Singapore's defence capabilities. The high bandwidth, low latency characteristics and network slicing capability of 5G holds great potential for use in defence applications, enhancing operational flexibility, effectiveness and efficiency," said Wong Chia Sern, director of infocomm infrastructure at the DSTA.

Vincent Ho, director of enterprise comms and digital infra at HTX, said: "In today's digital and technologically augmented operating environment, reliable and stable connectivity is essential for Home Team operations. As the usage for 5G in Singapore increases, it is imperative that we have a dedicated capacity that ensures Home Team operations are not affected even during scenarios where a surge in the number of network connections slows down data transmission speeds for normal users."

After many years of development, network slicing is finally wending its way into the real world, spurred on by the increasing availability of 5G standalone (SA) networks.

Recent highlights include Deutsche Telekom launching a slice for cloud gaming, and Verizon offering a network slicing service called Enhanced Video Calling, which supports a better experience on apps like Facetime, WhatsApp and Zoom. And just this week, EE revealed that it used network slicing at Belfast Christmas Market to enable fast, secure payments at the all-important beer tent.

It's not clear at this moment in time if slicing will shift the needle on revenue – it likely depends on the type of customer (enterprise or consumer), and if the data being carried is mission-critical or not. Either way, it promises to strengthen the ties between network access providers and end users, which is no bad thing.