Australia 12th In 5G Deployment

SYDNEY: Australia is ranked 12th out of the 22 countries that have deployed 5G technology by global research company OMDIA. In its first 5G Market Progress Assessment, OMDIA’s ranking of Australia was based on operator launches, network coverage and subscriber take-up, as well as 5G spectrum availability and regulatory eco-system.

South Korea is leading the 5G pack, according to the report, having established itself as the early market-leader for 5G technology deployment as it did with 4G. Kuwait and Switzerland are next. 

In the Australian market, OMDIA said that, with all three major operators now launching commercial 5G services, the focus will fall on the operators’ ability to scale up 5G coverage across the country.

“Australia is a particularly interesting market for 5G given the speculation that exists around the competition that 5G Fixed Wireless will deliver to fixed-broadband services delivered over the NBN network,” said OMDIA analyst Stephen Myers. 

He cautioned that delivering 5G to outer suburban, regional and rural areas where NBN is vulnerable will be extremely challenging.