Virtually everyone uses a smartphone these days, and for many, these devices have been
extra useful in the pandemic for ordering food or getting important news even taking
classes online. South Korea is at the forefront of smartphone
tech, and was the first to commercialize a 5G network.
Well, things will soon go beyond that... and new 6G technology will have us talking with
friends and family as holograms. Arirang's Jang Tae-hyun is here in the studio
today to tell us more about 6G, which they say will be here in less than a decade.
So, Tae-hyun, what's 6G?
Hi Devin, 6G networks could be up to 50 times faster than 5G.
They also have just one-tenth of 5G's latency, which is the time taken between a user's action
and the end result. So, in other words, far more data can be stored
and transmitted at a faster speed, making the world "hyper-connected."
"Basically, hyper-connectivity is about a connection from person to person,... then
person to object... and object to object. And they are connected by a fast speed and
high accuracy."
This will open a new world of extended reality, dubbed XR... using holograms.
Holographic images need bigger data storage as they are three-dimensional information.
But the high-storage 6G technology... can make holograms reality.
Well, that's really interesting. Tell us more about how 6G will change our lives.
So, there are six main areas where 6G can be used.
For example, people in Korea, France and India can wear smart glasses connected to the 6G
network,... and can meet each other as three-dimensional figures holograms.
The fast data transmission makes that happen. 6G can also be used at smart factories...
where all the work is done by AI robots. It also allows autonomous driving... of cars
and even drone taxis. By using satellites, it can cover a wider
range than before... meaning that there will a stable network on earth... and even above
the sky and under the sea. Thanks to the reduced latency shortening any
delay between action and result, and the projection of a clear 3D image,... 6G can help doctors
perform remote surgery. It will also be used in eco-friendly smart
cities and to improve security technology.
Alright... so which countries are trying to develop 6G?
Many countries around the world are actively developing 6G technology.
South Korea has decided to invest around 194 million U.S. dollars on development of a 6G
network by 2025. Korea and the U.S. have agreed to work on
joint research and development of emerging technologies like 6G... following the commitment
made at the Seoul-Washington summit in May.
"Standardization is important in communication technology... because merely being good at
development doesn't mean it'll be successful. For instance, Japan developed its own technology
3rd generation mobile communication. There was no technical problem,... but it's useless
if other countries don't use the technology."
He added that it's important to develop the communication technology by cooperating with
places like the U.S. and Europe, which are ahead of the game.
Groups like ATIS' Next G Alliance in the U.S. are concentrating on 6G leadership... and
Europe has started a program called 'Hera-X' to build a roadmap for this project.
Other countries like China, Japan and Russia are also joining the 6G race.
I see. So, how is the research and development in Korea going so far?
Companies and universities are working on 6G technology... partially thanks to the funding
from the government. Conglomerates like Samsung and LG Electronics,...
and the country's major network providers are also working on the project.
And the director of a research center at KAIST, the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and
Technology, said that in the future, people will no longer need to carry smartphones...
although this issue is controversial. In the 6G era, objects will have perfect intelligence,
meaning that objects around us will help out so that we can get a convenient service.
It's because every object will be "smart" and have its own AI system in the hyper-connected
6G world.
"The mobile communication eras are often classified by generation... and we see them as a 10-year
term. So, we expect the 6th generation of mobile communication to come by 2030."
It sounds like the distant future,... but when we think of our smartphones, we never
imagined we would be so obsessed with them. So, who knows what is going to happen next?
Thank you for that report. I'll see you around.
Good bye.