Huawei CEO calls for harmony as the dawn of IoT looms

By 2020 Huawei will have 6.7 billion mobile broadband users on 1Gbps network with a billion devices connected to the Internet of Things if everything goes to plan, according to Ken Hu, Huawei’s CEO.

Hu outlined Huawei’s new mobile broadband blueprint for the next five years as he addressed the audience at the 2015 Global Mobile Broadband Forum. Huawei and HTK demonstrated a 1Gpbs network at the Forum, running at 1Gbs.

Delivering on Huawei’s MBB 2020 Strategy will require technology and business model innovation, as well as cross-industry collaboration, as the company focuses on spectrum, air interface, network architecture, integrated base stations and operations based on user experience, Hu told delegates.

As connecting people remains a top priority the onset of the Internet of Things will stretch the already scarce time resources of the mobile operators, so they must work together, said Hu.

“In order to realise the huge opportunities of the IoT we must develop and unify cross-industry standards, contain costs, and promote cooperation among different stakeholders,” he said. “These three factors will help drive growth in this market.”

At the Forum Hong Kong telco HKT and Huawei demonstrated the world’s first 4.5G 1Gbps mobile network, with some guests reporting peak download speeds 1.2Gbps. The 4.5G technology will be available commercially in Hong Kong 2016, according to Alex Arena, HKT’s Group Managing Director.

Earlier this year, HKT and Huawei demonstrated the world’s first IP-RAN based 3CC CA with a single-user peak rate of 450Mbps. The Forum demo introduces a new element, a world-first 4CC CA network, with a peak download speed 2.6 times faster than the 3CC CA network.

The introduction of 4.5G LTE technology will be a massive boost to the IoT industry, said Huawei’s Hu.

In other Forum news, a new study claims that the use of additional C-band spectrum for mobile broadband in London and Shenzhen alone will generate an additional US$440 million (€400 million) of economic benefit. The study Use of C-Band Spectrum for Mobile Broadband in Cities: London and Shenzhen was conducted by Plum Consulting with analysis from the GSMA and Huawei.

The report highlights an urgent need for regulators across the globe to address the allocation of spectrum required to meet the huge growth in mobile data traffic, according to the GSMA’s head of Asia Alasdair Grant. “C-band spectrum will enable operators to provide consumers with high-speed mobile broadband in city centres,” he said. “We urge governments to seize the opportunity.”