SK Telecom (SKT), KT and LG Uplus are now speeding up efforts to construct infrastructure for fifth-generation (5G) networks after securing bandwidth during a national frequency auction that ended Monday.
To begin the world's first commercial 5G services in March 2019, the three firms are set to start work to select network equipment companies they will work with at the end of this month at the earliest.
The firms need to select equipment partners by August at the latest, given that it is expected to take about four to five months to construct nationwide networks.
The mobile carriers have already sent requests for proposals (RFP) to companies dedicated to developing commercial equipment, such as Samsung Electronics, Huawei Technology, Nokia and Ericsson.
Generally, mobile carriers conduct quality and efficiency tests on network equipment after the RFPs are sent, and then begin the bidding process to select partners.
Attention is high on the competition between Samsung Electronics and Huawei to win orders for 5G network infrastructure.
Samsung has about a 40 percent market share in the nation's network equipment market.
Huawei is cited as a formidable rival as its equipment is known to be 20 to 30 percent less expensive. The firm displayed advanced technology for the 5G 3.5 gigahertz frequency band with its chipset Balong 5G01 during the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2018 in Barcelona in February.
This poses a major dilemma for the mobile carriers as network equipment produced by the Chinese smartphone and telecom equipment maker is subject to security concerns.
The United States, Korea's major ally, has openly held the Chinese equipment in check, calling on U.S. mobile carrier AT&T to cut off business relations with the firm. A U.S. congressional report stated in 2012 that the Chinese equipment could be used for espionage.
In December 2016, three Republican members of Congress also urged the Pentagon to check on security risks to U.S. facilities and the 28,500 troops stationed in Korea posed by Huawei's role in 5G networks, according to U.S. media reports.
The U.S. position is influencing Korean telecom companies although the Chinese firm claims its products have no security issues.
According to Radio France Internationale, Tuesday, the Australian government is also moving to exclude Huawei from the country's 5G network construction.
"Though Samsung Electronics does not fall behind Huawei in technology, the reason mobile carriers choose Huawei equipment would be its price competitiveness," an industry official said.
Another official said, "Mobile carriers are expected to ponder until the last minute whether to adopt Huawei equipment."
Source: http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/tech/2018/06/133_250926.html