Verizon to start 5G testing in 2016
Verizon has announced that it plans to begin testing 5G technology next year that will bring about 50 times the throughput of 4G LTE and the ability to handle exponentially more Internet-connected devices.
The company said that while 5G technology won’t be introduced in the US until after 2020, it is working with partners including Alcatel-Lucent, Nokia, and Samsung to begin field trials next year.
Testing will begin at ‘innovation centers’ in Massachusetts and San Francisco.
Roger Gurnani, executive vice president and chief information and technology architect for Verizon, said: “5G is no longer a dream of the distant future. We feel a tremendous sense of urgency to push forward on 5G and mobilize the ecosystem by collaborating with industry leaders and developers to usher in a new generation of innovation.”
In 2008, Verizon began testing 4G LTE and commercially launched the network in late 2010.
According to the company, more than 98 per cent of the US population has access to 4G LTE and 87 per cent of Verizon Wireless data traffic is carried over the network.