5G: Reshaping the Industries

Deloitte's latest report – " 5G: Reshaping the Industries" was jointly developed by Deloitte China Technology, Media & Telecommunication Industry, Deloitte Financial Advisory Department and China Unicom. This is the first time that one of the big four jointly issues a 5G report with domestic operators. This report aims to explore the in-depth applications of 5G in various fields and exhibit innovation of 5G business models, so as to effectively improve the integration of 5G and other emerging technologies, help process and carry out 5G application scenarios smoothly and extend new realm for digital economy development, hoping to provide reference for participants in the industry chain and professional institutional investors.

Viewpoints / key findings include:

1. 5G technology may boost 10 trillion-dollar economic value in downstream industries based on one trillion-dollar investment, and drive evolution or transformation of business models.

5G enables a new era of Internet of Everything (IoE) with faster transmission speed, lower latency, lower power and massive connection, leading and contributing to the digitalization of all walks of life. It will bring new participants in various industries including transportation, energy, manufacturing, education, healthcare, consumption and entertainment, facilitating evolution or even disruptive transformation of traditional business models, thus creating tremendous economic value.

2. The evolution or transformation of industry applications and business models cannot be achieved by a single technology, but requires the integration of 5G and other technologies.

In addition to the support from 5G network facilities, the evolution or transformation of industry applications also requires the integration of basic technologies such as artificial intelligence(AI), edge computing, visual technology and sensing technology, and vertical industry solutions such as drones, virtual reality(VR)/augmented reality(AR) technology, control system and monitoring system. 5G ensures that applications driven by various kinds of technologies could be effectively integrated to function in a more complete and intelligent manner.

3. Centering round industry application scenarios, 5G network deployment will be driven by applications. In the short and medium term, 5G will be implemented firstly in the application scenarios of enhancing mobile broadband.

Due to high investment and incomplete standards in relation to 5G deployment, it is expected that telecom operators will adopt longer-term and more flexible deployment based on the needs of application scenarios. Application scenarios of enhancing mobile broadband will be implemented firstly in regions of high user density. Correspondingly, downstream application scenarios with mature technology and high economic value would be given priority in the implementation of 5G network. More technical barriers will be broken down over time, and economic value brought by 5G-based downstream applications will be increasingly emerging in more scenarios.

4. 5G market has drawn wide attention from capital markets. Currently, basic technologies and downstream applications are attracting the most investment, and investment targets are usually small businesses.

In addition to relevant companies throughout the industrial chain, venture capital and private equity are also actively involved in the investment in 5G ecosystem. Currently, basic technologies such as AI, big data and visual technology, and downstream application scenarios such as smart mobility and smart healthcare are attracting the most investment. As the industry is still at an early stage of development, investment from venture capital funds in small and medium-sized start-ups is the mainstream.

5. 5G-enabled application of technologies such as AR/VR, robots, drones and facial recognition will help to bring about an intelligent and digital Winter Olympics in 2022.

Applied in 2022 Winter Olympics, 5G network will allow audiences to enter the stadium via facial recognition, which can also ensure the audiences' safety. Besides, AR devices can provide better park tour experience and sports commentaries for on-site audiences. VR devices will enable off-site audiences to watch the games as if they were present at the site. Moreover, in the post-Olympic era, the collection and analysis of big data will provide valuable reference for future sporting events.