Fostering the Domestic 5G Ecosystem through 5G Open Lab
Expanding Asia Influence through SCFA Cooperation
Future Discussions on Collaboration with Global ICT Companies


KT Chairman Hwang Chang-gyu delivered a keynote speech at Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2017 held in Barcelona, Spain on February 27, 2017, with the theme "5G & Beyond, Accelerating the Future."
"KT will commercialize 5G first in the world in 2019."

Then on September 4, 2018, KT, together with key executives, reviewed preparations for 5G commercialization and announced plans to open the '5G Open Lab' for activating the 5G ecosystem and to undertake various activities to raise 5G awareness. This came exactly 555 days after KT announced its 5G commercialization plan.

KT has been making diverse efforts toward 5G commercialization. These efforts, which started domestically, are now expanding their scope to Asia and the world.


Fostering the Domestic 5G Ecosystem through 5G Open Lab
The 5G Open Lab, which KT opened at its Research and Development Center in Seocho-gu, Seoul, is a domestic outpost for KT to embark on full-scale 5G service development and expand the related ecosystem.

The 5G Open Lab is a collaborative space where KT works with participating companies to develop 5G services, consisting of three development spaces and an exhibition space. Participating companies receive development infrastructure from KT, including 5G base stations and terminals. Additionally, depending on the characteristics of each development space, they can use necessary equipment such as CCTV and VR when needed.

The development spaces are commonly equipped with base stations for 5G communication that are connected to a separate core test network. The 5G Open Lab provides development environments divided into three zones: the 'Infrastructure Zone' where development and testing of 5G-related infrastructure and virtualization technology take place, the 'Media Zone' enabling experience and development of 5G immersive media and entertainment services such as AR/VR, and the 'Smart X Zone' for developing and testing various IoT-related application services such as smart cities and connected cars.

Companies wishing to participate receive various information, participation methods, and business cooperation plans through the 5G Open Lab website (https://5gopenlab.com/). Additionally, companies can reserve development and exhibition spaces at the 5G Open Lab through the website and can even make commercialization proposals directly to KT.
To make it easier for participating companies to develop 5G services, KT plans to API-ize its core 5G technologies and provide them through a portal called 'API Link' (https://apilink.kt.co.kr/). KT API Link is a system that allows services to be created by easily combining KT platforms like building blocks, and through automated processes including API design, development, and testing, KT can rapidly provide APIs to interested companies. Starting from year-end, KT will sequentially disclose various 5G core technology APIs such as VR, cloud, precise positioning, and video analytics through the API portal.

Through operating the 5G Open Lab, KT plans to strengthen the related ecosystem, secure global 5G market success cases, and expand its partners to approximately 1,000 companies by 2020. To this end, before the end of this year, KT plans to expand the 5G Open Lab under the name 'Open Innovation Lab' in Pangyo so that more participating companies including startups can conveniently utilize the 5G infrastructure.


Building East Asia Connectivity for 5G Cooperation
KT is strengthening cooperation with major telecom operators in China and Japan by forming a consultation body focused on 5G technology development and commercialized services. The 'SCFA (Strategic Cooperation Framework Agreement) 5G Technology Strategy Meeting' is part of this cooperation effort.

In 2011, KT established SCFA in partnership with China Mobile of China and NTT DoCoMo of Japan. This strategic consultation body, Asia's largest among telecom operators, is actively collaborating in next-generation network technology, services, and marketing sectors. Particularly since 2015, the three companies have maintained active cooperation not only in LTE but also in 5G fields.
The SCFA meeting hosted by KT on September 5-6 at the KT Research and Development Center in Seocho-gu, Seoul was attended by 5G technology development personnel from KT, China Mobile, and NTT DoCoMo. The three companies discussed 5G commercialization strategies, 5G specialized technologies, and 5G service strategies, and identified and shared V2X and IoT application cases.

KT presented its 5G technology development and commercialization preparation status and shared KT's case for the world's first 5G commercialization. KT also proposed strengthening cooperation among Korea, China, and Japan's leading telecom operators to lead 5G technology standardization and take the lead in expanding the global 5G market through 5G technology dissemination.

Lee Su-gil, Senior Executive Director of KT's Network Research Technology Support Division, stated, "Going forward, based on 5G specifications designated as international standards, we will establish interworking specifications for commercial services in VR, IoT, V2X, healthcare, and other sectors through cooperation among the three companies to lead 5G commercialization."


KT's 5G: Beyond Domestic and Asia to the World
From September 5-7, KT participated in the 'GSMA Mobile 360 Series 2018 Conference' held in Bangkok, Thailand, where it shared KT's 5G business achievements from the PyeongChang Winter Olympics and plans for 5G commercialization. The GSMA Mobile 360 Series 2018 Conference is an international conference held annually under GSMA's auspices, where ICT operators, government agencies, and industry leaders from each region discuss themes that impact the mobile industry.

Under the theme of Digital Societies, this conference brought together ICT operators from the Asia-Pacific region, government agencies, and industry leaders to discuss future Connected Communities where new innovations and technological developments lead to socioeconomic growth, improved living standards, and sustainable business operations for companies.

In particular, on September 6, the 'Exclusive 5G Executive Summit,' a workshop organized by Ericsson, was held. Besides KT, ICT operators and government agencies from the Asia-Pacific region including Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, and Myanmar attended to share their respective 5G preparation status and discuss methods to activate the global 5G market.
As the only domestic telecom operator invited to the conference, KT explained its 5G business achievements from the PyeongChang Winter Olympics under the theme 'Bringing 5G into Reality' and presented its plan for promoting 5G commercialization and conducted roundtable discussions.

KT explained that it is preparing for 5G commercialization by establishing differentiated strategies based on the 5G network construction and service experience accumulated through the Olympics. Additionally, KT forecast that unlike LTE services concentrated on smartphones, 5G will undergo a paradigm shift toward B2C and B2B services through linkage with various industrial sectors such as autonomous driving, smart factories, and disaster safety.
As the only domestic telecom operator, KT will participate in 'MWC America 2018' held in Los Angeles, USA from September 12 for three days to inform the global market of KT's 5G technology and discuss cooperation methods with global ICT companies.