China Unicom Will Complete 5G Key Technology Layout in 2016

The 17th Wireless China Industry Summit was held recently. Fan Bin, senior director of 5G innovation center of China Unicom said at the Summit that China Unicom's 5G cloud network architecture targeted to make different network slices responsible for different service scenarios based on virtualization, software and arrangement, to realize the migration from dedicated telecommunications network to common network platform.

5G cloud network capability open platform exits as an architecture with 3 layers which are network domain, platform domain and service domain. The network domain combines BSS/OSS and MANO to achieve consolidated management of network slices and open capacity for the platform domain which should have subscription management of third-party services, API open & billing functions for the service domain and capacity arrangement & capacity scheduling functions for the network domain. The service domain supports the third-party service providers, MVNO, end users or proprietary business.

China Unicom will promote the evolution of 5G network architecture and key technologies as preparations for launching 5G services in 2020.

The operator plans to complete 5G end-to-end network architecture key technology layout and construction of Open Lab and to be verified of 5G service demonstration and single-point technical performance by the end of 2016. It targets to finish research on key technologies of 5G wireless, network, transmission & security and environmental construction of 5G laboratory in 2017 while accomplishing lab validation of key 5G technologies and 5G construction plan by 2018.