Communications (China Market)

The development of 5G in China

Main article: Development of 5G in China

History

2024

Construction of SkyNet space Internet network with global coverage begins in China

On May 9, 2024, China successfully launched the Changzheng-3B launch vehicle with the Zhihui Tianwang-01 satellite (Smart SkyNet-01), which will be used in the deployment of the new SkyNet satellite Internet system. To create a global network, China plans to use a satellite constellation of 16 or 32 spacecraft located 20 thousand km from Earth. By comparison, GPS satellites operate at a distance of about 20,200 km from Earth, while Chinese BeiDou satellites operate at a distance of 21,500 km. Read more here.

Chinese authorities oblige local telecom operators to get rid of equipment with foreign chips

On April 12, 2024, it became known that the authorities China ordered local telecommunications companies to get rid of equipment with foreign chips. The move aims to reduce reliance on foreign semiconductor products in light of the intensifying standoff with. USA

According to The Wall Street Journal, citing information received from knowledgeable persons, this is primarily about abandoning AMD and Intel processors. In accordance with the approved requirements, Chinese operators will have to completely abandon the use of products from these American manufacturers by 2027. As an alternative, it is planned to use hardware solutions supplied by companies from the PRC.

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It is noted that this measure will hit the business of AMD and Intel, for which the PRC is one of the key sales regions. In particular, in 2023, it was China that became the largest market for Intel: it accounted for more than 27% of the corporation's total revenue.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Chinese operators are increasingly purchasing chips developed and produced domestically. This is facilitated by both state directives and the government's policy on import substitution in the IT industry, as well as the gradual improvement in the quality and reliability of local semiconductor products.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of the PRC obliged state mobile operators to inspect their infrastructures for the use of non-Chinese semiconductor components and determine the timing of their replacement. Beijing, as noted, also introduced guidelines to phase out Intel and AMD chips in personal computers and servers of government agencies.^[1]

China Mobile launches satellite for 6G communications

On February 3, 2024, the Chinese telecommunications company China Mobile launched what is said to be the world's first satellite for 6G communications. The spacecraft, called Xinghe, has been successfully launched into low Earth orbit. Read more here.

2023

China launched the fastest Internet in the world - 1.2 Tbit/s

On November 13, 2023 China , the fastest Internet line in the world officially launched. The bandwidth of the communication channel passing through Beijing, Wuhan and Guangzhou reaches 1.2 Tbit/s, or 1200 Gbps. At this speed, you can download 150 HD movies in just one second.

The project was attended by specialists from Tsinghua University, telecom operator China Mobile, telecommunications company Huawei Technologies and Cernet Corporation. The total length of the fiber optic line exceeds 3000 km. The Beijing-Wuhan-Guangzhou channel is part of the Chinese infrastructure for future Internet technologies (FITI) - a project that, as of the end of 2023, has been in development for about 10 years.

China launched the fastest Internet line in the world

It is noted that Chinese specialists managed to surpass the forecasts of market experts who believed that ultra-fast Internet lines with a bandwidth of 1 Tbit/s will appear no earlier than 2025. By November 2023, most of the world's backbone Internet networks operate at speeds of 100 Gbps. And in the United States there is a fifth generation Internet2 infrastructure with a bandwidth of 400 Gbps.

The head of the FITI project, Wu Jianping, from the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said that the ultra-fast line opens up opportunities for the PRC to create "an even faster Internet." Ultra-high bandwidth backbone networks are critical to national education and research, as well as the rapidly growing need to transmit vast amounts of data in areas such as robotic vehicles and smart businesses. In addition, high-speed communication lines are necessary in light of the rapid development of artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things.^[2]

China fulfills 5-year plan to develop communications in 3 years

As of the end of September 2023, 3.19 million 5G base stations have been deployed in China. At the same time, the number of owners of 5G smartphones in the country exceeded 737 million people, which corresponds to 42.8% of the total base of mobile subscribers in the PRC. Such statistics in mid-October 2023 were published by the Ministry of Industry and Informatization of China (MIIT).

In 2020, for every 10 thousand inhabitants in the PRC, there were five 5G base stations. At the same time, the country's authorities set a task by the end of the 14th "five-year plan" (2021-2025) to increase the number of 5G stations to 26 per 10 thousand population. Thus, by the end of 2025, the total number of such "towers" should be approximately 3.64 million. However, local telecommunications companies managed to achieve their goal in a much shorter time frame.

3.19 million 5G base stations deployed in China

It is reported that by the end of 2023, Chinese operators will put into operation an additional 600 thousand 5G base stations. Thus, their total number will be approximately 3.79 million. In other words, the five-year plan for the development of communications in the country will be implemented in three years.

Chinese Deputy Minister of Industry and Information Technology Zhang Yunming said that the country is aimed at constantly strengthening the bandwidth of communication networks, technological innovations, integration with related industries and international cooperation. According to him, as of the end of September 2023, China owned 42% of the world's patents for 5G-related technologies. MIIT will continue to accelerate 5G applications in areas such as manufacturing, mining and electricity, while exploring new use cases in healthcare and education. 5G services will help strengthen the country's economy.^[3]

China Mobile has taken up the development of 6G networks

China Mobile cooperates with dozens of equipment operators and manufacturers as part of a large-scale project to develop and implement sixth generation (6G) cellular technologies. This is stated in a document released in mid-February 2023 by the Next Generation Mobile Network Alliance (NGMN). Read more here.

China builds quantum satellite network

In early March 2023, it became known that Chinese research institutes are working to create a quantum communication network using satellites in low, medium and high Earth orbits. Read more here.

2022

Telecom market growth of 8% to 1.58 trillion yuan

The total revenue of Chinese companies operating in the telecommunications sector in 2022 exceeded 1.58 trillion yuan (approximately $0.23 trillion at the exchange rate as of March 24, 2023). The increase compared to the previous year was about 8%. Such data are contained in the report of the Ministry of Industry and Informatization of the PRC, published in mid-January 2023.

It is noted that the highest growth rates were recorded in the segment of developing technologies, such as the Internet of Things, cloud computing and network data centers. In these areas, total costs rose 32.4% year-on-year.

Investments in the telecom sector China in 2022 rose 3.3%, reaching 419.3 billion yuan (approximately $61.3 billion). The report says that China has made significant progress in the development of mobile IoT services and products. In 2022, the number of connections to such platforms in the PRC amounted to 1.84 billion. Thus, China became the first country in the world in which the number of mobile IoT connections exceeded the total size of the subscriber base of mobile operators.

It is also said that China is accelerating the development of 5G infrastructure. As the country's Minister of Industry and Information Technology Jin Zhuanglong said in early March 2023, more than 2.54 million 5G base stations have been deployed in China, and the number of owners of smartphones with fifth-generation mobile communications has exceeded 575 million. In 2023, China intends to build about 600 thousand more 5G base stations.

It is also noted that China has formed a group of IMT-2030 for research in the field of 6G. The emergence of such networks, providing the highest data transfer rates and minimal delays, will provide the possibility of introducing advanced technologies in the fields of virtual and augmented reality, autonomous transport, etc.^[4]

China successfully tested 6G network

On November 23, 2022, it became known that China had tested the sixth generation (6G) mobile technology. The experiment was attended by the manufacturer of smartphones and telecommunications equipment ZTE and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of the country (MIIT). Read more here.

China is launching its satellite internet. It will be 5 times faster than Starlink

On March 5, 2022, China launched a suite of commercial satellites to test broadband services, build in-orbit networks and integrate communications technology, as well as remote sensing. Each satellite has a mass of 190 kg and is capable of transmitting data at a speed of 40 Gbps (this is five times more than Starlink). The experimental satellite network is called Mini-spider Constellation.

2021

Chinese telecom rose 8% to $232.41 billion

In 2021, China's telecommunications sector grew by 8% and reached $232.41 billion. The Ministry of Industry and Informatization of the PRC (MIIT) published such data in early February 2022.

According to MIIT, enterprise demand for new digital services such as cloud computing, big data and data centers is a major factor that has triggered the growth of the Chinese telecommunications market.

According to the ministry, revenues of telecom operators from these digital services increased by 27.8% and accounted for 44.5% of the total growth in industry revenues.

Chinese telecom grew in 2021 by 8%, to $232.41 billion

MIIT also noticed that 8% year-on-year growth was higher than the 4.1% growth rate in 2020. Revenues from fixed-line communications, data and Internet services accounted for 61.5% of the total industry. The Internet services industry showed growth of 21.2%, to $245.06 billion.

The ministry's report notes that by the end of 2021, about 1.43 million 5G base stations have been deployed in the country - they account for more than 60% of the global figure.

MIIT officials pointed to more than 300 Chinese cities starting building gigabit fibre-optic networks, adding that broadband internet investment grew 40% year-on-year in 2021.

Telecom business profit reached $20.87 billion at the end of 2021, an increase of 13.3% on an annualized basis. At the same time, they also spent 5% more on research and development (R&D) in 2021 ($11.92 billion). MIIT figures include Chinese companies that register at least $790,500 in revenue from Internet services.

The IT services market increased by 20% on an annualized basis and reached $948.6 billion.

According to MIIT, in 2021, the total profit of software suppliers increased by 7.6% to almost $188.14 billion. Software exports in 2021 amounted to $52.1 billion, which is 8.8% more than in 2020.^[5]

China has decided on the timing of the launch of 6G networks

On December 18, 2021, Wang Jianzhou, former chairman of the board of the operator China Mobile and senior consultant to the GSMA association, said that China has no plans to stop at 5G and is going to launch the first 6G network by 2030. Read more here.

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