With its unprecedented speed, connectivity, and opportunities for innovation, 5G wireless technology is changing how businesses operate.
Let's look at the case of Sarah, for example, who is a small business owner living in a major American market. Like many business owners, Sarah wants to expand. She's continually on the lookout for investors, turning her enterprise into an around-the-clock time commitment.
Today, Sarah has to be in two places at once. She has a video conference with some potential suppliers at 1:00 PM and an in-person meeting with investors at 2:00 PM. She can't make the video call from her office because she'll be late for her meeting, but fortunately, 5G wireless technology gives her another option.
In this scenario, Sarah can take an Uber to her meeting and conduct the video call en route. Her suppliers can see and hear her perfectly, and the call doesn't drop because 5G is well-established in her area.
In fact, 5G will be available to 218 million people in the United States by the end of 2024, and by 2030, 90% of all people in the country will have access to the technology.
Verizon has reached an average download speed of 607.2 Mbps, while T-Mobile has a median download speed of 238.87 Mbps nationwide, so Sarah has little to worry about during her on-the-go business meeting.
For business owners, this technology means more than just quicker internet; it opens the door to real-time data processing, enhanced Internet of Things (IoT) integration, and entirely new business models.
As industries become increasingly digital, 5G will revolutionize operations by boosting productivity and improving customer experiences.
"5G will invert the last mile problem, wherein bandwidth from users to the 5G edge will far surpass bandwidth on the next hop from the edge to the cloud," said Satyam Vaghani, former vice president and general manager of Internet of Things and Artificial Intelligence at Nutanix. In 2021, Vaghani co-founded Tiyro, where he is CEO of a company that makes AI accessible to any developer building a smart application.
"The next AWS might be a provider of rich application development and hosting services on the 5G edge, not in the core or cloud. The physics of 5G will challenge the ‘locality’ of data lakes, accelerate the dispersion of AI, and so on."
You can access 5G in over 500 American cities, and its integration will only expand. How will this expansion impact enterprises and why should forward-thinking companies prepare for this technological shift?
Overload at the Network Edge
For starters, all that 5G data will likely put more pressure on the already heavily loaded network edge, according to Jeff Paine, senior vice president of marketing for Pica8. Pica8 makes an open network operating system that runs on low-cost "white box" switches targeted at access edge and distributed campus deployments.
Legacy three-tier edge architectures – with access-layer switches or routers feeding into aggregation-layer devices that ultimately link to core routers at the top tier – already struggle under the data burden generated by IoT devices and distributed branch-office cloud connections, he said.
"5G basically becomes the final straw. [It will force] wholesale campus and access edge network infrastructure upgrades because the legacy edge switches, switch stacks, and chassis switches are already overwhelmed before 5G piles on," Paine explained. "It's likely to drive the need for more edge data centers to handle all that traffic, especially for real-time applications."
Data centers can extend upgrade lifecycles by swapping older, simpler network hardware, such as routers and switches for 5G-capable devices. Recent advances in containerization and virtualization have already eased the network burden of earlier projections.
With continued improvements in software-defined networking, storage, and computing resources enabled by hyperconverged infrastructure, data centers can reasonably expect to stay ahead of the curve.
Fresh Security Concerns
5G may also be a boon for hackers.
"Compared to its predecessors, 5G networks boast a wider attack surface due to the increased number of connected devices and the denser network infrastructure. Additionally, its reliance on cloud, virtualization, and software-defined networking introduces new avenues for exploitation," said Samantha Kight, Head of Industry Security at GSMA, in a recent report.
"From potential cyber-attacks to privacy concerns, managing security risks is an essential priority for individuals, businesses, and governments alike."
A potential fix is to use artificial intelligence (AI)–driven analytics embedded in systems at the network edge to detect anomalies in network performance that indicate an attack.
Nevertheless, the expanded attack surface caused by an exponential proliferation of connected devices may conceal security challenges of an altogether different nature. As networks take on more traffic without security solutions like Secure Access Service Edge (SASE), networks will suffer decreased visibility, and service providers will struggle to identify traffic abnormalities and attacks.
Alternate Realities
In the near term, 5G's improved wireless speeds open up exciting possibilities for bandwidth-intensive applications like mobile video conferences in cars and augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR).
AR/VR technologies are projected to reach a global market value of $40.4 billion in 2024 and – according to current projections – will hit $62 billion by 2029. It has already overtaken the global desktop PC market's value of about $10 billion.
5G technology is everywhere and becoming extremely valuable to business owners. In the real estate industry, for example, the technology lets home buyers take virtual tours of houses, dramatically speeding up the buying experience.
This technology could change how people interact with almost every industry today, and it will be equally transformative both from a consumer and an enterprise perspective.
Hospitals could use it to help train surgeons. Educational institutions can take students on virtual field trips, and AR/VR applications can assist field service personnel with repairs.
SD-WAN Mobility
Another potential 5G impact is in software-defined wide-area networks (SD-WANs). Unlike its predecessors, 5G offers speeds fast enough that – when integrated into SD-WAN appliances – can serve as a robust backup link or as one of several broadband paths the SD-WAN can dynamically select.
Extending SD-WAN to 5G could give enterprises more control over application performance when accessed from mobile devices, according to Verizon and Cisco, who have partnered to build a mobile SD-WAN.
The Distributed Workforce and Fixed Wireless Applications
5G may also be an alternative to broadband Internet and leased-line access networks at enterprise branch locations, including banks and retail stores. As the distributed workforce appears to be here to stay – with many employees working outside of centralized enterprise hubs – designing networks to accommodate consumer-grade mobile phones accessing enterprise-level applications increasingly makes sense.
Other viable applications include so-called fixed wireless solutions, in which enterprises deploy 5G private mobile networks within campuses to support localized applications such as CCTV networks and IoT device reports. In fixed applications, the high energy consumption of newly designed 5G modems will be less of a concern than in mobile applications.
It's clear that while 5G presents a wealth of opportunity for innovation in AR/VR, autonomous cars, SD-WAN and other applications, it's having challenges in areas such as security and the network edge. In any case, it's time to start planning accordingly.
New Business Models and Revenue Streams
A noteworthy aspect of 5G is its potential to enable new business models and create additional revenue streams. With its ultra-fast speeds and ability to connect massive numbers of devices, 5G is driving the development of subscription-based services, smart products, and advanced mobile applications.
For example, businesses can now offer "smart" versions of their products—like connected appliances or vehicles—that provide real-time data and performance monitoring.
These smart products often come with subscription services, allowing companies to generate ongoing revenue through automatic software updates, predictive maintenance, or enhanced user experiences. 5G speeds make it all possible.
5G also enables the creation of more sophisticated mobile applications. From AR shopping apps to real-time health monitoring, companies can leverage 5G's low latency to provide richer, more immersive customer experiences. This advancement opens up new opportunities in retail, healthcare, and entertainment industries, where mobile experiences are becoming the norm.
It's worth noting that 5G supports emerging technologies such as edge computing and IoT, which business owners can incorporate into their business models. Companies can develop solutions offering real-time insights, such as smart city infrastructure or autonomous logistics systems. This technology allows businesses to tap into new revenue streams while staying competitive in their markets.
For enterprises looking to innovate, 5G is more than just a faster network and mobile video conferencing; it's a gateway to future-proofing their business through creative services and smart solutions. As a result, everyone from small business owners like Sarah to the CEOs of multinationals can take advantage of this emerging technology moving forward.
This is an updated version of the original article published on September 2019 and revised on October 26, 2022.
Paul Desmond is a contributing writer. He is co-founder and principal of Saratoga B2B group and formerly an editor at IDG’s Network World, Redmond magazine and Redmond Channel Partner magazine.
Michael Brenner updated this article. He’s a keynote speaker, author and CEO of Marketing Insider Group. Michael has written hundreds of articles on sites such as Forbes, Entrepreneur Magazine, and The Guardian, and he speaks at dozens of leadership conferences each year covering topics such as marketing, leadership, technology and business strategy. Follow him @BrennerMichael.
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