First came calls through mobile devices. Later, text messages could already be sent through those wireless devices. They then allowed to surf the Internet. And then, that navigation shot up its speed so that users could enjoy a real Internet in their terminals, already sufficiently equipped for the era of videos and live broadcasts …
In just four decades, mobile telephony, since that inaugural generation that made those first calls possible, has undergone a constant revolution. From change to change, from progress to progress, the leaps have been so spectacular and the experience for customers has been so satisfying, that today their presence is absolute in people’s lives.
Because, without a doubt, telecommunications and technology are about that, about people. Telefónica knows this, hence its mission is to make a more human world by connecting people’s lives. And now it is taking another step to achieve it with the launch of its 5G network, which comes to change the lives of people and companies.
Key to the future
5G is not just another generation, the fifth, in that sequence of technological advances in mobile telephony. Because of its characteristics, because of its power, 5G is much more. “5G is not just a new generation of mobile telephony. It is a revolution due to its practical applications for all sectors and because it allows to expand ultra-broadband coverage in rural areas and in emptied Spain. With 5G come a multitude of cross-cutting benefits for sectors such as tourism, energy, automotive or health, ”explains the president of Telefónica, José María Álvarez-Pallete.
By turning on its 5G, Telefónica participates in that revolution with a leading role with which, in addition, it supports its digital leadership. It also serves to reinforce its vocation of service, because its 5G comes at a key moment for Spain, which is facing a challenging reconstruction to overcome the economic and social effects of the pandemic. Among them, a digital transformation whose result will be decisive for the future of the country and that will be able to count on Telefónica’s 5G to face such a challenge.
If the company turned to safeguarding telecommunications and connectivity during the months of confinement to try to soften its effects, now its networks will also be available to everyone at the time of reactivation. Its commitment could not be clearer or more ambitious, since it has been set as a goal that its 5G reaches 75% of the population before the end of the year. If until now, fiber optics was Telefónica, having been able to deploy the largest network in Europe, from now on 5G will also be Telefónica.
“Telefónica once again demonstrates that it is and will be part of the solution and engine of economic and social progress in Spain,” says Álvarez-Pallete. And he adds: “ With 5G comes a level jump towards hyperconnectivity, which will change the future of our country. This is a golden opportunity for Spain to lead the fourth industrial revolution and take advantage of the outstretched hand of Europe for the reconstruction process ”.
Population coverage 5g 2020 Telefónica.
Population coverage 5g 2020 Telefónica. / Photo: Telefónica / La Razón
Everything connected like never before
The enormous potential of 5G is supported by its disruptive capacity. The Internet, our mobiles and our relationship with technology will undergo a monumental transformation. 5G will be faster, less latent, smarter, more reliable. Its speed will reach 10 gigabits per second (GBps), 100 times more than the first 4G and 10 times more than its later improved versions (4G LTE) .
This speed will coexist with lower latency. 5G illuminates the era of the millisecond , which will become the true unit of time measurement. With this fifth generation of mobile telephony technologies, latency, that is, the response time between requesting and receiving information, will be limited to one millisecond, to the thousandth fraction of a second.
And no, it is not just any thing, because that millisecond changes everything. It is everything when it comes to autonomous vehicles, in which one or two milliseconds translates into tens of meters in braking and even the ability to anticipate hazards or accidents. The same occurs in remote surgical operations and in other similar applications in the field of healthcare, for which 5G represents a very powerful ally because, ultimately, it establishes real time. That is, the possibility of following what is happening as it is happening and just when it is happening. And of course, that, when it comes to an operating room, changes everything.
This real time will also do magic things in the consumption of different leisure alternatives. It will allow sports lovers to follow the competitions with a 360º experience that will make them feel as if they were on the track, in the field or on the circuit. And to fans of ‘gaming’ it will offer equally unknown features in the games that they play with participants from anywhere in the world.
5G also brings the era of hyperconnectivity. We will be more connected than ever, not only with each other, but also with all the devices that surround us, which will also be linked to each other. This fifth generation will already mean the definitive progress of the Internet of Things (IoT), with tens of billions of objects connected and entirely at our disposal .
