As discussed in many posts on this blog, 5G was heralded as a revolutionary technology that would transform industries, enable entirely new applications, and usher in an era of unprecedented connectivity. While 5G has delivered improvements over 4G, its impact hasn’t been as transformative as initially predicted. Now, with 6G on the horizon, it’s crucial to understand the business differences between the two generations, why 5G faced headwinds, and how 6G can avoid repeating those mistakes.
5G – The Promise vs. The Reality
The core business promises of 5G revolved around:
- Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB): Much faster download and upload speeds for consumers.
- Massive Machine-Type Communications (mMTC): Connecting billions of IoT devices.
- Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communications (URLLC): Enabling mission-critical applications requiring near-instantaneous response times.
However, the reality has been more nuanced:
- eMBB (Mostly Delivered, But Not Transformative): Consumers have seen faster speeds, especially in areas with mmWave deployment. But this hasn’t fundamentally changed how most people use their phones. Faster video streaming is nice, but not revolutionary.
- mMTC (Slow Adoption): The widespread deployment of billions of IoT devices hasn’t materialized as quickly as predicted. Cost, security concerns, and a lack of compelling use cases have slowed adoption.
- URLLC (Limited Rollout): The most transformative aspect of 5G, enabling things like autonomous vehicles and remote surgery, has seen the slowest rollout. This requires widespread deployment of standalone 5G networks (5G SA) and edge computing infrastructure, which is expensive and complex.
Why 5G Didn’t Fully “Take Off” (From a Business Perspective):
- Infrastructure Costs and Deployment Challenges: Building out 5G networks, especially mmWave, is significantly more expensive than 4G. The need for denser cell site deployments and fiber backhaul created substantial capital expenditure (CAPEX) burdens for operators.
- Lack of “Killer Apps”: While 5G offers incremental improvements for existing applications, it hasn’t yet fueled the emergence of truly transformative applications that require 5G’s capabilities. The “if you build it, they will come” approach didn’t fully pan out.
- Device Ecosystem Maturity: Early 5G devices were expensive and had battery life issues. The ecosystem took time to mature.
- Spectrum Availability and Regulation: The availability and licensing of suitable spectrum, especially mmWave, varied significantly across countries, slowing down deployments.
- Business Model Uncertainty: Operators struggled to identify clear monetization strategies beyond simply charging more for faster data plans. The value proposition for enterprises wasn’t always clear.
- Standalone (SA) vs. Non-Standalone (NSA) Deployment: Many initial 5G deployments were Non-Standalone (NSA), relying on the existing 4G core network. This limited the full benefits of 5G, particularly for URLLC. The transition to Standalone (SA) networks is still ongoing.
- Consumer Perception: Many users were using 5G NSA and saw no appreciable difference.
6G – Learning from 5G’s Lessons
6G is being designed with a more pragmatic and business-focused approach, learning from 5G’s challenges:
| Feature | 5G (Promise) | 5G (Reality) | 6G (Anticipated) | Key Business Difference (6G) |
| Primary Use Cases | eMBB, mMTC, URLLC | Primarily eMBB, limited mMTC and URLLC | Holographic communication, immersive XR, autonomous systems, digital twins, integrated sensing & communication | Focus on fundamentally new capabilities and applications, not just incremental improvements. |
| Latency | 1ms (URLLC) | Often higher, especially in NSA deployments | Sub-millisecond, potentially microsecond range | Enables truly real-time applications and new interaction paradigms. |
| Bandwidth | Up to 20 Gbps | Varies widely, often lower than peak speeds | Terabits per second (Tbps) | Opens up possibilities for extremely data-intensive applications. |
| Network Architecture | Centralized and distributed (edge) | Primarily centralized, edge slowly developing | Highly distributed, AI-native, hierarchical edge, integrated space-air-ground | Greater flexibility, resilience, and intelligence, enabling dynamic resource allocation and optimization. |
| Spectrum | Sub-6 GHz, mmWave | mmWave deployment limited | Terahertz (THz), visible light communication (VLC) | Utilizing new, wider spectrum bands to achieve extreme bandwidths. |
| AI Integration | Limited, mostly for network optimization | Growing, but not fully integrated | AI-native design, pervasive AI at all layers | Enables autonomous network operation, self-optimization, and intelligent resource management. |
| Sensing | Separate from communication | Emerging integration in some cases | Integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) | Creates a “digital sixth sense,” enabling new applications in localization, environment monitoring, and human-machine interaction. |
| Business Model Focus | Primarily faster data for consumers | Struggling to find compelling enterprise uses | Specific, high-value applications, B2B focus, outcome-based pricing | Emphasis on solving concrete business problems and creating demonstrable value, rather than just selling speed. |
Key 6G Business Differentiators:
- Focus on Transformative Applications: 6G is being designed from the ground up to support applications that are simply impossible with 5G, like holographic communication and truly autonomous systems. This creates a clearer value proposition for businesses.
- AI-Driven Network: The integration of AI at all levels of the network will enable greater efficiency, automation, and adaptability. This will reduce operational costs (OPEX) and improve performance.
- Integrated Sensing: The ability of the network to “sense” its environment opens up entirely new possibilities for applications and business models.
- Sustainability: 6G researchers are prioritizing energy efficiency and sustainable design from the outset, addressing a major concern with 5G.
- Hierarchical Edge Computing: 6G envisions a more sophisticated, multi-tiered edge computing architecture, enabling more flexible and efficient resource allocation.
- Open and Programmable Networks: Enabling a shift to software defined everything, reducing vendor lock-in.
- Vertical Integration: 6G will be designed with requirements of sectors beyond telecommunications in mind.
How 6G Could Be Different (Avoiding 5G’s Pitfalls):
- Realistic Expectations: Setting more realistic expectations about the capabilities and timeline for 6G deployment.
- Stronger Focus on Use Cases: Developing compelling use cases before the technology is fully deployed, ensuring a clear market demand.
- Collaboration and Standardization: Fostering greater collaboration between industry stakeholders (operators, vendors, researchers, regulators) to ensure a more unified and interoperable ecosystem.
- Sustainable Design: Prioritizing energy efficiency and sustainability from the outset.
- Security by Design: Building security into the core architecture of 6G, rather than treating it as an afterthought.
- Early and Widespread Spectrum Harmonization: Ensuring global spectrum availability early in the planning process.
- Business Model Innovation: Moving away from offering faster speeds to offering a range of services, built on network capabilities.
Conclusion
6G represents a significant evolution beyond 5G, with the potential to be truly transformative. By learning from the challenges and limitations of 5G, the industry can take a more strategic and business-focused approach to 6G development and deployment, maximizing its potential to create value and drive innovation. The focus will be less on raw speed and more on enabling entirely new capabilities and applications, with a strong emphasis on concrete business outcomes and sustainability.
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