Grasping Growth Opportunities in the Age of Smart Cities and the Internet-of-Everything
The launch of China Mobile’s 5G Innovation Centre Hong Kong Open Lab lays the foundations for the city’s smart city roadmap and the rollout of commercial 5G services in 2020.
The city has cutting-edge IT and telecommunications infrastructure and is well-connected to the rest of the world, making it the ideal base for many multinational companies.
In March 2018, China Mobile International Ltd. opened its 5G Innovation Centre Hong Kong Open Lab in Kwai Chung. Launching the 8th open lab, China Mobile aims to leverage Hong Kong’s unique geographical advantages to showcase the company’s latest innovations in 5G technology to its international partners. The lab will also help China Mobile to research IoT applications and 5G technology and promote these new technologies to potential customers.
The rapid development of 5G technology with Hong Kong’s transformation into a smart city creates a unique opportunity for the company. According to Emma Zeng, General Manager of Enterprise Business, China Mobile International, China Mobile will utilise its extensive experience of Internet-of-Things (IoT) in Mainland China and play an important role in Hong Kong’s development as a smart city.
Earlier this year, China Mobile was awarded the Trial Permit for 5G test, marking a crucial milestone in the company’s development of providing 5G mobile services.
In September 2017, China Mobile launched Hong Kong’s first Narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) network that coincides with the city’s Smart City development plan. NB-IoT is a low cost, low power, high capacity and wide area technology designed for IoT applications.
Since the establishment in 2010 in Hong Kong, China Mobile International has provided a wide range of telecommunications solutions, including cross-border connections, data centres and cloud services, to support many Chinese and foreign companies with Hong Kong-based operations. Zeng believes that Hong Kong is an ideal base for China Mobile’s international services. “Hong Kong is not far from many major cities in Mainland China,” Zeng said, “for foreign companies, the city is a gateway to the Mainland Chinese market, and it is also an excellent base for Chinese companies looking to expand into other markets.”
She continued, “Hong Kong is home to some of the world’s leading professional talent. The city has cutting-edge IT and telecommunications infrastructure and is well-connected to the rest of the world, making it the ideal base for many multinational companies.”
According to Zeng, Invest Hong Kong is an excellent platform for sharing industry-related information. “InvestHK has provided us with professional advice and helped us to expand our network and access important resources. It is committed to developing solutions that will boost Hong Kong’s economy and realise the goals of the city’s development strategies. We hope that InvestHK can help us to explore more growth opportunities in Hong Kong that drive our continued success.”
Fast Facts
- China Mobile has twelve 5G Innovation Centre Open Labs, which are located in Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shandong, Guangdong, Chongqing, Sichuan, Hong Kong, Silicon Valley and Sweden. Eight of these have already been launched, including the recently opened facility in Hong Kong
- China Mobile was granted a 5G testing license in 2018 by Hong Kong’s Communications Authority. The company plans to conduct lab tests of 5G commercial network equipment inthe second quarter of 2018
- China Mobile International is the wholly-owned subsidiary of China Mobile, mainly responsible for the operation of international business of China Mobile. CMI provides a full range of comprehensive international telecommunications services which includes IDD, roaming, mobile, data, enterprise solutions and value added business across the globe
Further Reading
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