< PreviousSeveral service providers have launched commercial 5G services in a handful of markets, and oth- ers have announced plans for later in 2019 and beyond. Today, other than general descriptions of 5G networking’s performance capabilities, service provid- ers have left businesses with numerous unanswered questions on the sourcing and procurement of 5G services. Less than 45 per cent of communications service pro- viders (CSPs) globally will have launched a commercial 5G network by 2025. “The rollout of 5G features will not be ready for another five years,” said Bill Me- nezes, senior principal analyst, Gartner. “Much of its potential won’t be realised until the next release, which is expected to be finalised in 4Q19.” Gartner predicts that less than 45 per cent of communications service providers (CSPs) globally will have launched a com- mercial 5G network by 2025. “There is a lack and opacity of details Bill Menezes, senior principal analyst, Gartner says organisations should ask four critical questions when evaluating 5G network purchases to ensure that they can effectively implement them KEY QUESTIONS TO EVALUATE AND PLAN FOR ENTERPRISE 5G around 5G plan structures, prices for mo- bile services, and overall terms and condi- tions. This means enterprises acquiring proprietary 5G or early-stage 5G services are more likely to pay premium prices for limited usability or to delay their initial 5G planning,” said Menezes. “If you are hesitant to move to 5G, identify the viabil- ity of 5G-reliant use-case plans” To avoid such risks, buyers should ask service providers or resellers these four questions when evaluating 5G services. What will we need 5G for?What will we need 5G for? Gartner client surveys show that busi- nesses are interested in investing in 5G services and technology as long as those services and tech come with enhanced mobile broadband, are ultra-reliable and operate at low latency. If you are hesitant to move to 5G, iden- tify the viability of 5G-reliant use-case plans by asking carriers to provide de- tailed specifications on 5G performance, throughput and endpoint capabilities, as well as the timelines to deliver each. Where and when can we get 5G?Where and when can we get 5G? With the lack of details shared by service providers on what 5G services will involve — beyond what is initially available — en- terprise sourcing, procurement and ven- dor management leaders should require their carriers to provide detailed terms and data regarding current and planned coverage. They also should require the precise timelines for endpoint types and availability, and specifics about corporate plan structures. It is critical that your mobile service procurement teams develop realistic estimates or budgets for the expected cost of a 5G-reliant implementation to ensure that devices and Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity modules are compatible with their carrier’s 5G networks. What will 5G cost? What will 5G cost? It’s important that organisations avoid paying a premium for 5G service com- pared with 4G LTE. To achieve this, business buyers need to negotiate for 5G services to be included in standard 4G LTE corporate handheld device plans for no additional fee. How will 5G perform?How will 5G perform? Service providers are claiming 5G as a critical network enabler of applications, such as autonomous vehicles and remote robotic surgery. However, mobile service providers have rarely guaranteed network availability or performance with service- level agreements (SLAs). Separate hype from reality by requiring SLAs with committed service credits for 5G connec- tions that do not meet KPIs for network performance and reliability. The rollout of 5G features will not be ready for another five years.” Bill Menezes, senior principal analyst, Gartner 40www.commsmea.comCommsMEA January 2020 INTERVIEW 5G41www.commsmea.comCommsMEA January 2020 INTERVIEW 5G Got something to say? If you would like to be featured in Backchat, please message: georgina.ford@os.itp.com Justin Dustzadeh, chief technology officer at Equinix, outlines his top trends The top five trends to dominate the digital future of enterprises in 2020 include Distributed infrastructure and edge computing will accelerate hybrid multicloud adoption – Equinix anticipates edge computing will be a key driver in accelerating hybrid multicloud adoption across every business segment worldwide, which in turn will also enable the rapid progression of other emerg- ing technologies, such as 5G mobile communications. AI and IoT will drive new inter- connection and data processing requirements at the edge – Equinix predicts enterprises will accelerate the adoption of AI and machine learning for a broader set of use cases, requiring increasingly complex and more real-time-sensitive pro- cessing of large data sets originating from multiple sources. The rise in cybersecurity threats will require new data manage- Published by and Copyright © 2020 ITP MEDIA GROUP FZ-LLC. MEDIA PO Box 500024, Dubai, UAE Tel: + 971 (0)4 444 3000 www.itp.com Offices in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, London and Mumbai ITP MEDIA GROUP CEO Ali Akawi Managing Director Alex Reeve EDITORIAL Editor at Large Georgina Ford Contributors Peter Branton, Kevin Sebastian ADVERTISING Sales Manager Paul Hylden Tel: +971 4 444 3000 email: paul.hylden@itp.com ITP LIVE General Manager Ahmad Bashour Tel: +9714 444 3549 email: ahmad.bashour@itp.com PHOTOGRAPHY Senior Photographers Efraim Evidor, Adel Rashid Staff Photographers Aasiya Jagadeesh, Ajith Narendra, Fritz John Asuro, Jessica Samson PRODUCTION & DISTRIBUTION Group Production & Distribution Director Kyle Smith Distribution & Warehouse Manager Praveen Nair Production Manager Basel Al Kassem Production Co-odinator Manoj Mahadevan Image Editor Emmalyn Robles CIRCULATION Circulation Executive Loreta Regencia MARKETING Director of Awards & Marketing Daniel Fewtrell Marketing & Events Manager Brian McNamara ITP GROUP CEO Ali Akawi CFO Toby Jay Spencer-Davies Subscribe online at www.itp.net/subscriptions The publishers regret that they cannot accept liability for error or omissions contained in this publication, however caused. The opinions and views contained in this publica- tion are not necessarily those of the publishers. Readers are advised to seek specialist advice before acting on information contained in this publication, which is provided for general use and may not be appropriate for the readers’ particular circumstances. The ownership of trademarks is acknowledged. No part of this publication or any part of the contents thereof may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form without the permission of the publishers in writing. An exemption is hereby granted for extracts used for the purpose of fair review. ment capabilities – With the increase in cybersecurity attacks and data privacy and protection regulations, most com- panies are now moving toward accessing cloud services over private networks. As such, Equinix predicts that new data pro- cessing capabilities will allow enterprises to run their computation in a secure manner. Data regulation will influence enter- prise IT strategies – Equinix believes we will see further complexity in protecting personal data as global trends toward stricter or new data privacy regulations continue to gain momentum, making it more difficult for global companies distributed across multiple markets to navigate. This prediction follows the recent global survey commissioned by Equinix, of over 2,450 IT decision-makers across the world, where 69 per cent of respondents listed “complying with data protection regulations” as a top priority for their business. Digital transformation will provide a foundation for a more sustainable world – Equinix predicts sustainability will likely be a top initiative for world-class organisations, as stakeholders increas- ingly look to digital businesses to lead and innovate in areas of environmental responsibility and sustainability. This is in line with results from the aforementioned survey, which found that 42 per cent of IT decision-makers agree the “greenness” of a company’s suppliers has a direct impact on their buying decisions. IMAGE credit: Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash 42www.commsmea.com BACKCHAT MARITIME TRENDS CommsMEA January 2020zain.com A Wonderful World WE ABLE GLOBAL BUSINESS AND DISABILITY NETWORK DISABILITY INCLUSIVE BY 2022 Zain WeAble magazine 20.5x27.5 AW.indd 19/23/19 11:31 AMNext >