U Mobile signs MoU with ZTE to develop 5G network

Malaysia mobile network operator, U Mobile signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with ZTE Corporation, a global provider of telecommunications, equipment and network solutions, to drive the development of pre-5G and future implementation of 5G mobile network technologies in Malaysia.

U Mobile Chief Technology Officer, Too Tian Jen (left), and ZTE Malaysia Managing Director, Steven Ge (right) officiating the MOU signing ceremony, witnessed by (from furthest right to left)
U Mobile CEO, Wong Heang Tuck, ZTE Senior Vice President, Zhang Renjun and Director of U Mobile, Kenneth Chang

Under the latest collaboration, U Mobile said it is the first Telco in Malaysia to enter into the phase of 5G network development. 

Pre-5G is an intermediate level between 4G and 5G. The technology has the potential to offer speeds up to 10 times faster as compared to a 4G LTE network. It will be available earlier than 5G and is able to deliver a near 5G user experience.

While undertaking the research on pre-5G stages, U Mobile is also seeking to develop 5G core technologies that are still currently at an early standardization stage. Widely known to be the next generation of mobile network technology, 5G vision will support the capability of peaking download speeds at up to 20Gbps, which is 20 times faster than LTE-Advanced of 1Gbps. It allows users to download a High-Definition (HD) movie in seconds as compared to minutes needed on a 4G LTE network. 5G is able to offer up to 1,000 times more capacity compared to 4G and an ultra-low latency at 1 millisecond.

70% of U Mobile subscribers are smartphone users. To stay ahead of the consumer needs, U Mobile said it has been actively pursuing every opportunity to advance its services through innovative product offerings and a robust network.

Following the signing ceremony, the management from U Mobile and ZTE traveled to ZTE’s R&D center and experienced the laboratory test of pre-5G testing using 2.6 MHz frequency. The R&D center was equipped with state of the art facilities and expertise specialized in the field to capture the potential of 5G networks.

“U Mobile is constantly exploring new technology that will provide best in class users experience to our customers. We see 5G technology as the technology that would support the ever increasing communication needs of the future. The collaboration with ZTE will also support our government’s vision of being a Smart Digital Nation by 2020.” said Too Tian Jen, Chief Technology Officer, U Mobile Sdn Bhd, during the signing ceremony.

Steven Ge, Managing Director of ZTE Malaysia, also commented, “ZTE is delighted to work on 5G technologies with U Mobile, the leader in network innovations in Malaysia. ZTE is making major investments in 5G to lead the industry in the research and standardization of this key technology of the future”.