China networks ‘to spend $180bn on 5G in seven years’
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China networks ‘to spend $180bn on 5G in seven years’

Three Chinese operators will spend 48% more on 5G than 4G, driven by HDTV, says bank report.

China will spend $180 billion on 5G infrastructure over seven years from 2019, according to a new investment bank study.

This marks a 48% increase in investment by China’s three operators – China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom – according to Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post (SCMP), which reported the study this morning.

According to the report, almost 40% of China’s mobile users will be on 5G by 2022 – a total of 588 million 5G customers.

The SCMP says that Edison Lee, an analyst at the Jefferies investment bank, believes the three “will build out aggressively from 2019”. Lee compares the three companies’ spend on 4G over a seven-year period, which he puts at $117 billion.

“The impact of 5G on innovative consumer and business services on the mainland will be significant,” says Lee, quoted in the SCMP.

Video using 4K and 8K high-definition standards will help to push the adoption of 5G. The use of high frequencies will require the installation of more base stations, Lee adds, according to the SCMP.





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