China’s nationwide 5G network now includes more than 600,000 base stations
China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) stated the country has now built more than 600,000 5G base stations and that data shows that the number of devices connecting to the network has exceeded 150 million, with more than 110 million users in China having already signed up for 5G plans.
According to data available on Statista, 2020 will see approximately 42.3 million 5G users in China in 2020 and the number is expected to grow to 1.39 billion by 2030.
“In the next three years, China will be at the introduction stage of 5G development, so it is necessary to make proactive moves in construction,” said Wen Ku, an official with the MIIT, in reference to base station builds.
The COVID-19 epidemic has accelerated the implementation of digital applications, aided by the development of 5G.
Liu Duo, head of the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, expects innovative services related to 5G to grow substantially as the number of 5G users continues to increase.
Recently, Asia Times reported that in China’s Guangdong region, specifically, a total of 98,613 5G base stations have been built. Further, the number of 5G data plan users exceeded 20.74 million in Guangdong as of the end of August, according to the Department of Industry and Information Technology of the Guangdong provincial government.
There are over 5 million 5G users in Beijing alone. As a result, the city will boost the development of 5G applications, such as unmanned vehicles, and promote 5G construction at the Beijing Daxing International Airport and the 5G transformation of venues for the 2022 Winter Olympics.
And in Shanghai, there are plans to invest CNY 10 billion ($1.4 billion) in 5G network construction this year, with the city anticipating 30,000 outdoor 5G base stations and 50,000 indoor small stations built by the end of 2020.
