As 5G moves from launch to growing deployment the site is evolving to reflect new policy goals and new market priorities.
The 5G Observatory is a project funded by the European Commission to provide an independent assessment of progress towards EU policy goals and to give an overview of market developments in Europe and the other major economies.
EU policy goals have evolved over the past year: the 5G Action Plan’s target of commercial launches in major EU cities has largely been met and a key objective of the Digital Decade policy is 5G coverage in all populated areas by 2030.
The 5G Observatory is shifting focus to reflect this: we will concentrate on extending coverage rather than 5G trials as well as tracking two other Digital Decade priorities, the development of 5G verticals and services covering several Member States, such as the 5G corridors.
Other 5G-related EU policy initiatives will also be covered in the Observatory, such as the 5G Toolbox. This aims to improve the security of 5G networks by strengthening the role of national authorities to assess risk, to limit any dependency on a single vendor and stimulate the EU’s own 5G component production.
Adopting the internationally recognised approach to EMF limits recommended in the Electronic Communications Code is another important area, as is 5G’s role in helping meet the objectives of the European Green Deal.
In terms of market developments, the 5G Observatory will concentrate on those areas which may help fulfil policy goals. For example, Open RAN has the potential to reduce costs and make wider coverage less expensive while network slicing can facilitate the development of specialist 5G vertical networks.
Although the 5G Observatory has a new focus, all previous material is still available in the archive section.
The 5G Observatory is now being produced by a consortium of three companies VVA, PolicyTracker and LS Telcom.
