Are you wondering, “What can 5G do for my business?” Here are just a few ways Verizon 5G technology can help enterprise corporations, and even small business:
As the world grows ever more connected and the pace of business accelerates, fast is no longer fast enough. The growing expectation from consumers and organizations is response and experiences that feel like they are happening in real time.
Real-time answers. Real-time responses. Real-time experiences.
Make no mistake, this emerging era of practically instantaneous information delivery will bring great things, like faster, deeper and more actionable business intelligence; advanced imaging; smarter vehicles; better tools for any job; and more.
It will also leverage a new kind of network architecture. One that no longer relies on centralized, cloud-based computing and instead utilizes the powers of 5G and edge computing to bring the real-time enterprise to life.
Cloud computing: What it gave us and where it’s going
Few modern technologies have delivered as many business benefits and capabilities as the public cloud. It enables businesses to outsource infrastructure management and storage, and it’s flexible, scalable and cost-effective.
The cloud has been particularly beneficial for expanding the capabilities of programs focused on consolidated data storage, mobile productivity applications and modernizing enterprise systems. It’s also leveled the playing field across business segments by providing access to technologies previously out of reach for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), such as workflow management tools and customer relationship management (CRM) programs.
On an even larger scale, the cloud has enabled the development of the myriad applications that we utilize on our smartphones, essentially transforming the way we use mobile devices. Devices that will soon be powered by the next-generation 5G network—and require next-gen cloud architecture to support new applications.
As ever-increasing numbers of mobile and Internet of Things (IoT) devices come online—and as demand for the ultra-responsive application environments promised by 5G grows—the cloud’s latency could potentially become problematic.Latency: Why does it matter?
Network latency is the time required for a packet of data to make the round trip between two points. More simply, it’s the time between a user action—opening an app, clicking on a website—and the response to that action.
A number of factors can contribute to network latency, including the speed of and available bandwidth on the network; the number of hops the data has to make across switches, interconnections and other network equipment; and the size of the transmitted data packet. And, critically, the distance between the client device making the request and the servers responding to it.
Unfortunately, many data centers are built where land, electricity and water are the least expensive. That means when the typical urban mobile-device user clicks on an application or URL, they are accessing data that is likely stored hundreds or even thousands of miles away.
Why does that matter? Because latency is directly linked to the end-user experience. And end users don’t like to wait. Generally, any online experience with a lag time of more than 100 ms no longer feels instantaneous.
One hundred milliseconds isn’t a huge deal when you’re checking email, accessing a spreadsheet or consulting with a coworker in another state. But it’s a very big deal when you’re wearing virtual reality goggles that aren’t quite syncing with your movements, diagnosing medical emergencies remotely, operating a facility with autonomous manufacturing equipment, or working in public safety, where receiving intelligence practically in real time could profoundly impact safety, security and mission success.
That’s why distributed computing architectures, like edge computing and multi-access edge computing (MEC)—along with 5G—could be essential for supporting functionality that feels like it’s happening in real time.
Immersive experiences
Augmented, virtual, mixed and extended reality (AR/VR/MR/XR) technologies require extremely high bandwidth and extremely low latency. Anything less creates experiences that are less immersive and more frustrating—or downright nauseating. With MEC and 5G, these technologies could enter the business world in a big way, potentially powering hyper-realistic training environments, advanced medical imaging, remote repair, immersive meetings, augmented retail and much more.
Wireless media delivery
5G, which has the capacity to enable faster data transfer to the editing floor, along with advances in wireless camera tech, is expected to disrupt the media and entertainment industry on multiple levels, enabling new immersive and interactive experiences. 5G will transform media business models. Intel predicts that with new network capabilities brought by 5G, annual mobile media revenues are expected to double in the next 10 years to $420 billion in 2028 ($124 billion in the U.S.). 1
Digital marketing
Location-based, as-it-happens marketing should become more relevant to individual consumers, and analytics could allow marketers to tweak campaigns on the go. Faster connectivity could also enable higher-resolution and AR ads at the point of purchase (POP); mobile 4K and 8K video streaming; and relevant, omnichannel customer interactions through out-of-home (OOH) networks that feel like they’re happening in real time.
Smart safety
A solution that combines computer vision and augmented reality to enable faster, safer navigation through smoke, dust or fog-filled environments and transmit visual point of view (POV), telemetry data and location to command and control is currently being tested at the Verizon 5G First Responder Lab, along with other solutions to improve first responder safety and awareness.
Massive IoT
Organizations should be able to develop massive, scalable and valuable IoT capabilities known as MIoT. MIoT deployments could generate and harness huge amounts of data to drive advanced analytical and artificial intelligence (AI) programs and provide mission-critical services known as Ultra Reliable, Low Latency (URLL).
Precision manufacturing
Fully connected and automated factories could detect issues in near real time, potentially reducing error rates, increasing productivity and paving the way for real-time enterprise (RTE)—the holy grail of manufacturing technology.
Data-driven business intelligence
The ability to ingest and process vast amounts of data essentially in real time could empower organizations to rapidly respond to changing markets and demand.
Next-level logistics
5G and MEC could amplify three key technologies that will transform logistics: IoT performance tracking, robotics and distribution automation.
Piloting new possibilities: What will real time do for you?
“Transformative” is a term that’s thrown around frequently in the technology and business sectors, and it can be difficult to differentiate the wheat from the chaff—the truly transformative technologies from those that sound impressive but fail to deliver actual benefits.
We believe that 5G and MEC are the real thing—and the key to enabling the real-time era. By extending infrastructure to where business happens, these technologies could genuinely transform the way business gets done.
And we invite you—whatever your industry or business size—to imagine how 5G could help you do more, offer more, and work smarter or safer. Dream about all the new capabilities that gigabits-per-second throughputs and ultra-low latencies could bring to your organization. Visualize what real time could do for you.
And then, when you’re ready to partner with a company that knows how to turn big ideas into powerful realities, let us know. We can help you develop a pilot project that harnesses the combined powers of 5G and MEC to transform your organization.
Be sure to dream big.
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1 https://newsroom.intel.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2018/10/ovum–intel–5g–ebook.pdf
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