The paper, titled ‘Private 5G Here and Now,’ published by NTT and developed by Economist Impact, examines the industry obstacles around the deployment and acceptance of private 5G using data from a survey of 216 CIOs and senior decision-makers from the UK, US, Japan, and Germany. According to the survey, private 5G networks are gaining traction, with 90 percent of executives anticipating private 5G to become the mainstream network option.
According to the findings, slightly over half of organizations (51%) aim to implement a private 5G network in the next six to 24 months to increase security, reliability, and speed, with 30 percent of these companies currently deploying or in the process of deploying a private 5G network. German companies have shown the highest enthusiasm, with 40 percent of German companies installing private 5G networks. This is followed by 28% of UK businesses, 26 percent of Japanese businesses, and 24 percent of American businesses.
Covid-19 has made it simpler to get the funds needed for 5G implementation, according to the majority of CEOs (80%). Germany has the most positive attitude (93%), followed by the United States (83%), the United Kingdom (77%), and Japan (65%).
Security Concerns Accelerate Private 5G Adoption
With the growth of ransomware, CIOs and CISOs are seeking for methods to strengthen their defenses against more sophisticated assaults. According to the research, 69 percent of executives think that their present infrastructure’s security is inadequate. Other issues include enterprise data management (48%), coverage and speed (43%), and the present service provider’s reaction time (latency) (40%). When compared to technologies like Wi-Fi and public 5G, private 5G networks offer much better security.
Improved data privacy and security is seen as a very significant outcome by 83 percent of CEOs who anticipate to benefit from the adoption of private 5G networks. CIOs clearly desire security and control while simultaneously facilitating digitalization, and many feel that a local private 5G network can provide these important business needs. This is incentivizing businesses to develop and operate their own private 5G networks.
Challenges and Deployment Strategies for Private 5G
The most prevalent hurdle to building private 5G networks, according to the survey, is integrating the technology with old systems and networks (44%). Another key impediment, according to 37 percent of respondents, is the complexity of deploying and managing private 5G networks. Employees missing the technical skills and knowledge needed to run 5G networks is the third most prevalent hurdle, with 30 percent of businesses experiencing it.
This is one of the reasons why outsourcing to a managed service provider is the preferred method for constructing private 5G networks, according to 38 percent of CIOs. Purchasing a private 5G network ‘as-a-service’ can speed up adoption and provide a better end-user experience as well as a higher return on investment.
“The research highlights that the adoption of private 5G is happening now,” said Shahid Ahmed, Group EVP, New Ventures and Innovation at NTT. “The companies leveraging private 5G will have an unprecedented competitive advantage. Whether a company owns a factory floor, distribution centers, storefront or office space, private 5G can dramatically help digitize their businesses securely.”
