A technology roadmap for 4G evolution and 5G, and guidance on future business opportunities.

KT (www.kt.com) announced that it will officially publish its 5G evolution white paper, ‘Unlocking Commercial Opportunities from 4G Evolution to 5G’, at the MWC 2016 event in collaboration with global telecommunications operators.

KT is the chairman of the '4G Evolution to 5G' task force under the Network 2020 division of GSMA (Global System for Mobile Communications Association), the world's largest mobile operator association.

Through the joint GSMA white paper work, KT was able to mutually exchange ideas on the 4G evolution and 5G roadmaps led by 19 major global telecommunications operators participating in the task force, including Verizon, AT&T, Telefónica, Deutsche Telekom, and NTT Docomo, and laid the foundation for accelerating cooperation on technological evolution and business models.

▲KT Chairman Hwang Chang-gyu announced at MWC last year that “we will create a surprising future world with 5G.”

KT is expected to accelerate preparations for 5G pilot services and commercialization at the PyeongChang Olympics based on international standardization that reflects the future 5G requirements of telecommunications operators.

KT Convergence Technology Institute Director Lee Dong-myeon said, "The early commercialization of 5G in 2020 cannot be achieved by individual companies or countries alone, so we need to cooperate with the global mobile ecosystem for 5G." He emphasized, “GSMA’s role is becoming increasingly important,” and “As a national company, we will do our best to not only enhance KT’s global status but also develop the Korean telecommunications industry through the global spread of 5G technology and services.”

Meanwhile, KT Chairman Hwang Chang-gyu, who is also a member of the GSMA board of directors, was the only CEO of an Asian telecommunications company to deliver a keynote speech titled “5G and Beyond, Accelerating the Future” at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2015, a global mobile communications exhibition held in March last year. In this speech, he presented an innovative future vision for 5G communications, a hyper-connected, hyper-real-time, and ultra-high-capacity network, and emphasized the need for global cooperation.