Far EasTone Telecommunications Co Ltd (遠傳電信) yesterday said it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Swedish telecoms equipment supplier Ericsson AB to establish the nation’s first 5G laboratory.
The collaboration is part of the telecom operator’s efforts to create an open 5G ecosystem and to begin trials of 5G operations in 2018 at the earliest, before a commercial launch scheduled for 2020.
By that time, there would be about 100 million devices using 5G technology that would be capable of handling data 100 times faster than 4G technology, Far EasTone said.
The technology is in the standard-setting stage and is expected to be ready for commercial deployment within the next five years.
“We are seeking a clearer picture of the 5G business. The cooperation with Ericsson will help us be better prepared to offer 5G services,” Far EasTone chairman Douglas Hsu (徐旭東) told reporters on the sideline of the company’s annual general meeting in Taipei yesterday.
As 5G would support the “industrial Internet,” prompting a higher uptake of the Internet of Things and related applications, Far EasTone is targeting smart traffic, multimedia and smart energy conservation in its collaboration with Ericsson, company president Yvonne Li (李彬) said.
To accelerate its progress with 5G, Li said the laboratory would also be open to hardware makers, software developers and platform developers.
“We will research and test 5G technologies and applications in the laboratory in collaboration with our partners,” Li said. “In the 5G era, one company cannot do everything.”
Under the terms of the MOU, Far EasTone is to set up a 5G laboratory in collaboration with Ericsson in New Taipei City’s Banciao District (板橋) in the next quarter.
After launching 5G services, Far EasTone expects revenue share from its core connectivity businesses to gradually drop to a little more than 50 percent of its total, from 80 percent, while application services and multimedia platforms are expected to account for 30 percent and 20 percent respectively, Li said.
Far EasTone shareholders yesterday approved the distribution of a cash dividend of NT$3.75 per common share based on last year’s net profit of NT$11.49 billion (US$354.73 million), or NT$3.52 per share, plus its capital reserves.
That represents a 5.04 percent dividend yield based on the stock’s closing price of NT$74.3 yesterday.
In related news, Far EasTone said it plans to recruit 2,000 new employees this year, as the firm plans to develop new software and applications to enrich video content offered by its over-the-top service, and to expand its marketing workforce.
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