Rogers has announced a partnership with Swedish telcom giant Ericsson to deploy its next generation 5G network for Canadians, with so far multiple live tests already completed at Rogers Centre, in Toronto.
“We are at the advent of the fifth generation of wireless networks. Similar to how 4G powered the proliferation of the smartphone and on demand economy, 5G will make the mass communication of IoT a reality, changing how we live and work,” said Jorge Fernandes, Chief Technology Officer, Rogers Communications, in a statement.
Rogers held a press event at Rogers Centre today, demonstrating its 5G tech, citing how the stadium is “an ideal real-world testing environment with thousands of connected devices, dense concrete, and high peak data usage.”
Niklas Heuveldop, Head of Market Area North America, Ericsson, said “Ericsson is working hard each day to make 5G a reality, here in Canada and around the world. We estimate that there will be one billion 5G subscriptions worldwide by the end of 2023.”
Benefits of 5G include ultra-low latency, allowing for more devices to be connect to network with instant responsiveness, ushering in the future of more Internet of Things (IoT) applications and driverless cars.
Rogers says its multiyear network plan also includes its ongoing rollout of its Gigabit LTE network, using 4×4 MIMO, four-carrier aggregation and 256 QAM, part of the latest global 3GPP standards.
Rogers will trial 5G in Toronto and Ottawa, with more select cities to come over the next year.
Telus and Bell have partnered with Chinese company Huawei to test 5G networks, while former Canadian security officials have labelled the latter as a cybersecurity threat.
