1.4 trillion reasons to embrace 5G

Healthcare and manufacturing are two industry sectors set to benefit the most from new technologies while helping protect the environment.

The new report revealing that 5G will:

·         help healthcare professionals treat more than 850 million extra outpatients a year by 2030;

·         grow the manufacturing sector by four per cent over the next decade

·         reduce global emissions by half a billion tonnes

The research, commissioned by 5G leaders Huawei, challenges telco operators, government regulators and other suppliers to press ahead with rolling out 5G networks to spur economic growth.

Manufacturing is the industry set to benefit most financially from 5G, with it having the potential to grow worldwide GDP for the sector by four per cent, or just under $740 billion, by 2030.

5G will both reduce costs and unlock new income streams for the manufacturing industry, making it easier to monitor and analyse production in real-time using far more data has ever been possible before. This will help factories and production lines reduce machine downtime, cut down on wasted resources and reduce main

In the retail sector, uptake in future 5G usage is most likely to be around tracking goods, warehouse automation and immersive Augmented Reality, where shoppers will be able to experience and try goods before they buy.

The report also shows the benefits 5G technology can have on healthcare, including freeing-up more than four million extra bed days in hospitals around the world and helping ambulance services handle 40 million more emergency responses a year by 2030.

A fast rollout of 5G technology could reduce global carbon emissions by half a billion tonnes, through reduced energy use in the core and mobile access networks by 2030. This is the equivalent of the annual emissions from international aviation for a full year.

Victor Zhang, Senior Vice President at Huawei, said: “In a world where we are seeing economic slowdown, 5G provides great opportunities to transform industries, creating brand new business models and potentially unleashing $1.4trillion in gross domestic product. But these opportunities will only be achieved if industry, government and regulators work together to seize this opportunity.”

However, the benefits of 5G will not immediately be felt equally around the world, with high income countries that already contribute the most to global GDP benefitting first, given they have the most money to reinvest in to adopting new technologies. However, as we reach 2030, this disparity and imbalance will start to be redressed.