The evolution of mobile network technology has changed our lives gradually and dramatically. Such progress has seeped into our everyday lives and changed the way we communicate, spend our free time, and how we work.

Until the year 2010, communication was mostly voice and text-based. Over the past 13 years, we’ve seen consistent technology advancements from 4G to 5G and beyond, and we’re now able to enjoy ultra-high-definition, large-capacity multimedia content, anytime, anywhere.

Mobile network technology has redefined the cultural landscape of connections at all levels — between people to people, business to business and industry to industry.

Software Is at the Heart of Mobile Network Evolution, Moving Toward Virtualization

At Samsung, we have been focused on identifying the key technology that will drive mobile network transformation and we think the answer is software.

Venture capitalist Marc Andreessen once said, “software is eating the world.” Just like this famous phrase, global industries are being ‘eaten’ by software and this dynamic transition is called ‘virtualization’ in the network infrastructure world. Whereas hardware is the foundation for traditional networks, virtualization is all about shifting to software.

Virtualization lets you transform many hardware functions and features into software, allowing various services to run on a single hardware platform. Simply put, it works similar to downloading and regularly updating a range of apps on your smartphone.

vRAN Will Eat up the Network Infrastructure World

Samsung has been spearheading the shift toward network virtualization and openness. We introduced the first fully virtualized Radio Access Network also known as vRAN. Although vRAN currently accounts for just 3 percent¹ of the global RAN market, it is a pioneering technology that the industry is watching closely.

Samsung has been a forerunner in the innovative path to vRAN, proving our outstanding performance and wide-scale commercialization capabilities in the real-world, leading expansion in major 5G markets, including Asia, Europe and North America.

We supported the largest-scale commercial vRAN for the first time in the world with Verizon in 2020, and since then, have been providing stable and reliable 5G services to millions of customers. We also began our collaboration with DISH Wireless and Vodafone Group, actively expanding our vRAN footprint to new markets, including the U.K., Germany and beyond.

With the innovations that we are bringing to virtualization, we are creating the blueprint for next-generation networks. We are not only committed to advancing our technology, but more importantly, onboarding and growing the best software talents, which we believe is a central pillar to our achievements.

Samsung Networks Chipset: Packaging the Essence of Our Innovation and Technological Capabilities

The power of chipsets not only radiates through hardware-based networks, but also in software-centric virtualized architectures. While most functions and features are being turned into software, there are still integral parts of the network that remain as hardware. Therefore, the ability to pack advanced features into a tiny chipset is one of our invaluable asset.

Our competitive advantage stems from our unique combination of expertise in innovative software solutions and our comprehensive portfolio of hardware combined with our 5G network chipsets.

Samsung is the only major network vendor that has the capability to design, develop and manufacture 4G and 5G network chipsets in-house.

With the rising market demand for higher energy efficiency, as well as support for complex spectrum bands and reduced hardware footprint, there has been a stronger emphasis on chipset technologies.

Compared to previous generations, our latest 5G chipset reduces base station energy consumption by about 40 percent and antenna size by nearly half compared to previous products, and also includes support for multiple spectrum bands.

With a strong foundation built on over 40 years of experience in network technologies, we have managed to stay ahead of evolving market demands, introducing a compact and lightweight radio with high performance and energy efficiency.

Building a Better Tomorrow With Energy Savings Technology

The true value of innovation is not just about advancing technology, but it’s also about pursuing a better tomorrow. Ranging from software to AI and chipsets, sustainability has always been at the core of our product development strategy. Bringing our sustainability vision to life, we are introducing our newest energy saving features for vRAN at MWC this year.

As legendary hockey player Wayne Gretzky once said, “a good hockey player plays where the puck is. A great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be.”

As we continue along our exciting journey, Samsung will always think a step ahead, anticipating future needs of our customers. And, as a pioneer in the mobile network industry, Samsung will continue to drive this paradigm shift by jumpstarting the next wave of unforeseen innovation.

¹ Source: Dell’Oro (3Q, 2022)

During the 5G trial test in Beijing, the key technologies like spatial modulation and FBMC (Filter Bank Multicarrier) are validated for the low-frequency (3.5GHz), the performance of throughput, outband emission are tested. With Samsung’s ultra-high frequency 5G prototype system and devices powered by advanced beam forming technology, Samsung and China Mobile Research Institute sought to verify mmWave technology’s performance and frequency characteristics jointly, including mobility, peak throughput, and multi-user scheduling capacity, as well as mmWave transmission at indoor, penetration loss, etc.

“Over many years of research and development, Samsung has accumulated a wealth of technology and experience related to 5G technology and product development,” said Dai Jun Zhang, Vice President and Head of Samsung R&D Institute China – Beijing. “To accelerate the realization of 5G standardization and commercialization in China, we will continue to strengthen our joint efforts with the Chinese government, as well as operators in the future.”

Since the late 2000s, Samsung has continuously been investing in R&D of 5G key technologies and, since 2014, has primarily focused on 5G commercialization technologies. Through its efforts, Samsung has achieved great milestones on 5G technology development, including the handover demonstration in a multi-cell mmWave network, Radio Frequency (RF) technology essential in miniaturizing devices and equipment. Samsung has also played a key role in contributing to the formation of 3GPP standards, and strive for a global and unified 5G standard, expected to be finalized in 2018.

Right now, the entire telecommunications industry is preparing to usher in the era of 5G, which will surpass the current mainstream technology, 4G. Samsung Electronics has led in developing these innovative 4G technologies in the markets with the highest LTE penetration rates, such as the U.S., Korea, Japan and the UK. Now, the company is making preparations to lead the 5G era based on its innovative technology and previous success in implementing 4G.

In this interview, two of Samsung Network Business unit’s executives—Dr. Dongsoo Park, Executive Vice President and Head of Global Sales & Marketing Team, and Dr. Woojune Kim, Vice President, Next Generation Business Team—share how Samsung is working to do so.

Dr. Dongsoo Park (left) and Daryl Schoolar (right)

Q. Please tell us a bit about Samsung Networks’ current business status and achievements in 4G LTE?

Dr. Park: Our success with 4G LTE has helped us to build a strong global networks business. We have led in the development of OFDMA (Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access) technologies and this experience has proved helpful in rolling out LTE solutions.

We have successfully deployed LTE technology in advanced markets including the U.S., Japan, the UK and Korea. To continue innovating and providing cutting-edge technologies, we have focused on mature markets with the highest mobile broadband adoption rates. We do, however, see additional opportunities in emerging markets that could also prove to be valuable.

Q. What is your strategy for entering new markets such as South Asia?

Dr. Park: We’re pursuing markets with high potential for large-scale LTE deployments. In these markets, we’re looking to target operators with similar needs to our existing customer base, like those that are seeking advanced, cutting-edge LTE solutions.

We would like to work in emerging markets to contribute to their digitalization through LTE, all the while cultivating long-term relationship with our customer-operators. Our partnership with Jio in India is a great example of this. We don’t want to put ourselves in a position where we are competing only on price. We’re trying to enter markets where we can lead in technological development with innovative solutions.

In cases where it is part of the operators’ strategy, 5G is a definite asset for creating our opportunities. The introduction of 5G, with its use of small cells mixed with macro cells and reliance on network virtualization, will lead to more open interfaces and make it easier to integrate multiple vendors.

Q. What business strategies will you use to stand out in a crowded field?

Dr. Park: When it comes to vendor differentiation, our strategy is to be “first to market” with leading edge technologies. Our collaboration with Korean operators has allowed us to lead the deployment of some of the most technologically advanced LTE networks in the world.

For instance, we set a number of precedents in our efforts to commercialize various LTE technologies. This includes developing VoLTE, multicarrier and LTE Smallcell in 2012, carrier aggregation in 2013, LTE Broadcast (eMBMS) in 2014,  and tri-band carrier aggregation and virtualized core (NFV, vIMS/vEPC) in 2015. Furthermore, we expect to unveil  LTE-Advanced Pro features early next year. These will enable users to reach 1-gigabit throughput using tri-band carrier aggregation, 256QAM and 4X4 MIMO.

Dr. Woojune Kim (left) and Daryl Schoolar (right)

Q. What is the background of Samsung’s Next Generation Business team?

Dr. Kim: Samsung has been working on 5G in different areas of the company (IC, devices, networks) for the last five years. But earlier this year, we found that 5G was accelerating faster than anticipated, so we had to increase our efforts accordingly. To do this, we had to consolidate all of our 5G projects into a single business unit. The result is the Next Generation Business team, which incorporates Samsung’s 5G development teams, along with the 5G strategy team.

Q. What are some of R&D-related preparations Samsung is making regarding 5G?

Dr. Kim: Samsung believes 5G is different than previous mobile standards. It is much more than just an interface for mobile devices. It is a completely new network architecture and it will be found in a much more diverse set of devices including consumer electronics and industrial devices.

Samsung has been developing 5G-related technologies since 2011. We have invested significant resources in 5G technologies like millimeter wave channel models and RF ICs. This includes RF key technologies for smaller chipsets, multi-cell handover with millimeter wave frequency and network virtualization technologies.

Q. What is your strategy for collaborating with the 5G industry?

Dr. Kim: The key starting point for our strategy to commercialize 5G is partnering with operators. Right now, we are developing Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) solutions and we expect to move on to mobile solutions. We are also collaborating with other ecosystem vendors, such as component vendors, to find ways to reduce the costs of 5G equipment and solutions.

We are even working with our competitors to create mutual standards on which we can build a set of 5G parameters. These parameters will help operators understand what to expect from 5G. In addition, we have started to work with third-parties to ensure that video, IoT and other applications run properly across 5G networks.

Q. How is Samsung planning to differentiate itself when it comes to 5G?

Dr. Kim: Internally, we are proactively bringing together as many business units as possible to usher in this new era of telecommunications. For example, to introduce millimeter wave the network will require a new type of base station that is small, visually attractive, cost-effective and has the ability to run on low power. This requires Samsung not only to leverage engineering expertise in the network business to build the radio, but also to bring in resources from our consumer electronics business to create something that will be aesthetically pleasing.

Q. When will the 5G commercialization take place?

Dr. Kim: We think we will see some initial commercial networks based on 5G by the end of 2017 or early in 2018. We are expecting targeted use case-driven deployments initially, as opposed to all-encompassing nationwide rollouts.

We’ll also see that 5G won’t be as mobile-centric as we might have considered it to be previously. Fixed wireless, IoT and mission critical communications don’t always have the same broad coverage requirements as found in our traditional mobile communications networks.

5G, therefore, will serve much more than mobile devices and networks, as it won’t be required to have the same universal coverage. Instead, 5G will be deployed in more select areas for specific 5G aspects, such as high bandwidth or low latency, with LTE filling in coverage gaps.

Q. After launching 5G FWA commercially, what steps will Samsung take to initiate full 5G mobility?

Dr. Kim: Once the operators implement Fixed Wireless Access (FWA), they can then add mobility. Put simply, 5G FWA might be described as a “wireless fiber to the home” which is considered one of initial 5G use cases. 5G mobility is expected to be available around 2020. Until then, we will satisfy the current market needs of 5G FWA starting in 2017.

Q. What is the biggest misunderstanding that mobile operators have about Samsung Networks?

Dr. Park: Some mobile operators attribute the success of our networks business solely to our customer-operators in Korea. However, Samsung has been committed to mobile network development for more than 35 years, and actively contributed to advancing connectivity capabilities in a number of markets.

Having Korea as our home base affords us an incredible opportunity to commercialize the latest technology, which are reinforced by our current presence in the U.S., Japan, Europe, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Russia. Our recent collaboration with Jio India further promotes Samsung’s firm commitment to the infrastructure business.

The collaboration includes initial testing later this year of 5G mobility in an outdoor environment using T-Mobile’s 28 GHz (mmWave) spectrum and Samsung’s 5G proof of concept system, which will be enabled by Samsung’s advanced beam forming technology. In early 2017, additional in-depth trials will continue using a Samsung pre-commercial 28 GHz system.

“We are excited to work with Samsung to see how we can bring to life key attributes of emerging 5G technology, including extreme speed, low latency and massive connectivity,” said Neville Ray, Chief Technology Officer, T-Mobile. “Our collaboration with Samsung’s networks technology will enable us to enhance 5G development and availability.”

“Applying Samsung’s 5G leadership to assist T-Mobile in developing their next generation network is an exciting opportunity,” said Mark Louison, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Networks Business at Samsung Electronics America. “We are well-positioned to deliver the 5G ecosystem to leading operators like T-Mobile, given our years of experience and development across our semiconductor, device and networks divisions.”

Samsung network equipment and devices offer an attractive pathway to meeting ever-growing consumer demand for data in an emerging 5G world. 5G technology is expected to drive the next wave of mobile application development and the Internet of Things (IoT), connecting billions of devices and accelerating low latency gigabit speeds for richer content and experiences. Samsung is a key contributor and holds a host of essential patents related to the new 5G standards, which are expected to be finalized in 2018.

To hear more about Samsung Networks and see demonstrations of its networks business and wireless enterprise solutions, visit Samsung’s booth at the CTIA Super Mobility 2016 event in Las Vegas, Booth #3122.

“This achievement is solid proof of Samsung’s ability to channel its technical expertise from multiple business areas into important industry breakthroughs,” said Paul Kyungwhoon Cheun, Executive Vice President and Head of Next Generation Business Team at Samsung Electronics. “We are very focused on developing technologies that improve and accelerate the realization of a new generation of mobile networks and devices. Samsung will continue to increase its momentum in the development of exciting new 5G technologies.”

With these RF technologies, Samsung developed a new case-integrated antenna, which incorporates dozens of antenna elements in a module that is less than 1mm thick – a critical step towards engineering both compact small cell base stations and user devices.

Samsung also developed industry-leading efficient power amplifiers for use with mmWave signals to drive each antenna. These power amplifiers – the primary point of energy consumption in the radio module of a device – convert the low-power signal of a device into a high-power signal suitable for transmission over the air. Samsung’s breakthrough power amplifiers simultaneously double output power and improve energy efficiency by more than 50 percent.

Across the industry, current prototype base stations and devices are generally large pieces of equipment – base stations typically occupy a full cabinet, while devices must often be mounted on the tops of vans or trucks for testing. While bulky prototypes are common during the early stages of network technology research, miniaturization and efficiency scaling are a critical requirement for the development of commercial equipment and devices.

Size is particularly critical for 5G devices, as the peak and average throughputs of next-generation networks are expected to be on the gigabit-scale, where radio signal processing and power consumption can be very high without appropriately efficient technologies. Also, due to the naturally short range of the high frequency mmWave spectrum, network coverage strategies will likely require dense deployments of 5G small cells mounted in inconspicuous locations on walls and utility poles. These small cells thus need to be as small, light and efficient as possible.

Samsung Electronics has announced a series of milestone 5G technology developments since research began in 2013, when the company recorded the world’s first gigabit per second throughput benchmarks using next-generation prototype technologies. In 2014, Samsung surprised the industry by achieving consistent 1.2Gbps throughputs at speeds of 110km/h. Most recently, Samsung became the first vendor to move beyond a focus on throughputs, with an announcement of the world’s first handover demonstration in a multi-cell mmWave network.

During the live demonstration, Samsung, one of Deutsche Telekom’s 5G:haus partners, introduced its 60GHz millimeter wave(mmWave) small cell solution and handheld smartphones.

The demonstration involved the use of two Samsung smartphones to track the precise movements of a robotic arm from two separate angles. The 4K UHD video contents were transmitted over the air without any delay by the Ultra High Mobile broadband (U-MBB) service using Samsung’s 60GHz radio access technology. Samsung and Deutsche Telekom have achieved throughput more than 1.5 gigabit per second (Gbps) on each smartphone., It proves that 5G technology using spectrum above 6GHz can serve as one of the optimized solutions for next generation mobile services such as tactile internet, which requires lower latency and ultra high connectivity/throughput.

“We are pleased to have proven the feasibility of 5G technology through this live demonstration with Deutsche Telekom,” said Youngky Kim, President and Head of Networks Business at Samsung Electronics. “It is important for Samsung to take a realistic path towards 5G world by securing seamless mobility, which will enable people to enjoy immersive experiences such as virtual reality broadcasting services and hologram calls using 5G infrastructures. Samsung will continue its innovation with Deutsche Telekom to bring 5G technology closer to our lives.”

“As we demonstrate together with our partners, the development of 5G technology has reached a very exciting phase. As a next step in our 5G:haus, we will involve customers in the technology development process to bring the technology closer to them and ensure it meets their expectations,” said Bruno Jacobfeuerborn, CTO Deutsche Telekom AG.

Samsung’s radio access for the spectrum above 6GHz is designed to help address the key challenges of future networks such as the explosive growth in demand for bandwidth and densities of increased devices. The large amount of empty bandwidth in the spectrum above 6GHz will make it possible to accommodate large quantities of data traffic.

Samsung’s mmWave Radio Access is capable of beam-forming as well as intra and inter-system mobility. Also it is capable of providing handover within the time below 100msec between mmWave cells and LTE cells/mmWave cells.

The devices used during the demonstration are hand-held smartphones containing 16 antenna elements that support beam-forming, alongside standard 3G and LTE. This capability of supporting multiple bands and technologies in a small form factor is one of the key enablers of 5G.

This 5G demonstration highlights the strength of Samsung Electronics that combines both infrastructure and device solutions for future networks – something that few others in the industry today can match. The R&D talents and knowledge of engineers in both the mobile communications and network business units combined to deliver this leading edge 5G demonstration. We expect this to be the foundation for delivering successful end-to-end 5G solutions at an industry leading pace.

At this Mobile World Congress 2016, Deutsche Telekom has demonstrated ultra Low Latency connectivity and ultra High Data speed for mobile broadband with Samsung and other 5G:haus partners at Deutsche Telekom’s booth (Exhibit Hall 3 Stand 3L20).

The Samsung mmWave Mobile Radio Access and high-end smartphone devices will be also exhibited at both Deutsche Telekom’s booth (Exhibit Hall 3 Stand 3L20) and Samsung Networks’ booth (Exhibit Hall 2 Stand 2M10) during Mobile World Congress 2016, from February 22 to 25 in Barcelona, Spain.

Samsung Electronics, announced that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for joint development of common views on next generation 5G technologies with Japanese telecommunications operator, KDDI. The agreement sees the companies continue their more than decade long history of successful collaboration.

“Over the past 10 years, Samsung Electronics and KDDI have introduced the most advanced CDMA and LTE technologies to the Japanese market,” said DongSoo Park, Executive Vice President and Head of Research and Development team, Networks Business at Samsung. “We have worked together to drive innovation in 3G and 4G, and this track record of achievement makes us confident and excited about what we can provide in 5G era to end-users.”

“KDDI is committed to providing high-quality network performance and superior user experience to our customer,” said Yoshiaki Uchida, Managing Executive Officer, Technology Sector, Member of the Board at KDDI. “By continuing to work closely with Samsung, we will study the innovations in 5G that are needed to keep up with consumer demand for our mobile network.”

The partnership will help to increase speed of 5G development, with both companies leveraging their expertise in mobile network. The collaboration will focus on the research and validation of technologies most critical to the future of 5G. By focusing on the developments that will have the most impact first, both Samsung and KDDI will be prepared for next generation telecommunications.

Samsung continues to be actively engaged in a range of key global 5G research initiatives and leads multiple collaborative projects with its industrial partners, academic partners and operators around the world.

In particular, Samsung has played an important role as the chair of sub-working group for future IMT(5G) Vision in ITU-R WP5D, as well as a rapporteur on 3GPP 5G channel model SI for above 6 GHz. Samsung has also been leading and participating EU flagship 5G PPP projects of Horizon 2020.

About KDDI Corporation

KDDI, a comprehensive communications company offering fixed-line and mobile communications services, strives to be a leading company for changing times. For individual customers, KDDI offers its mobile communications (mobile phone) and fixed-line communications (broadband Internet/telephone) services under the brand name au, helping to realize Fixed Mobile and Broadcasting Convergence (FMBC). For business clients, KDDI provides comprehensive Information and Communications services, from Fixed Mobile Convergence (FMC) networks to data centers, applications, and security strategies, which helps clients strengthen their businesses. For more information please visit http://www.kddi.com/english.