By: Zoran Lazarevic, chief technology officer, Ericsson Middle East and Africa
The return of GITEX Technology Week 2021 is another distinctive stamp on the Dubai is Back memo. Yes, it’s been a challenging 18 months, but we have collectively ridden the storm.
How we’ve ridden the storm is equally as important as the fact we have made it this far. In fact, GITEX 2021 is the perfect platform to show how we did that. It wasn’t just new modes of working or a diligence and belligerence of the human spirit. There’s much to be proud of on that score but the flexibility that we needed to keep ourselves safe came from the communications networks, technology and infrastructure that the UAE and the GCC’s communications service providers (CSPs) have been bold enough to enhance in recent years.
It is exceptional that a technology like 5G has become so commonplace across the GCC. The CSPs across the GCC have quickly seen the end-to-end value proposition that an enhanced network provides and throughout the pandemic, their commitment to 5G has increased as they sought to mitigate disruptions to business and society. In fact, according to the latest Ericsson Mobility Report, 5G will account for 73 percent of all mobile subscriptions in the GCC countries by the end of 2026.
Of course, the digital transformation mandates that are at the center of the long-term visions of the region’s governments have made CSPs cognizant of advancements in network technology. But awareness and action are two very different things and the purpose, vision, and effort that goes into making these commitments a reality shines a light on the ambitions of regional CSPs.
Now that 5G networks are being rolled out across the region, the opportunity for organizations and society to leverage the adjacent technology advancements in AI, Machine Learning, IoT aren’t just sketches of the future. The time for these technologies is now and the conduit is 5G.
GITEX Technology Week 2021 is the prime platform to show how a range of industries and millions of consumers across the Middle East can benefit from 5G. And that’s exactly what Ericsson will do at GITEX this year.
The value proposition for 5G has never been stronger. The value proposition for both businesses and consumers are immense. To bring this to life, Ericsson will share the latest 5G and AI technology at GITEX to give visitors from all sectors and sections of life a deeper insight into the benefits of digital transformation in business and society. Ericsson will have two main demonstration sections at its booth at GITEX 2021. The 5G Consumer immersive demo and the 5G Connected Industries and Enterprise Immersive demo will be interactive ways for visitors to get a better understanding of the future of business and society thanks to 5G technology.
The consumer demo section will show life at home, on the street, and at the stadium, allowing visitors to tour nine 3D model scenes that are brought to life by a series of AR overlays, showing the incredible opportunities afforded by a 5G enhanced future.
At the 5G Connected Industries and Enterprise demo section, visitors can delve into a range of industries. Each industry has a range of use cases at the demo and visitors can zoom into various touchpoints to see the individual impact of 5G using the use case value calculator.
Both of these demos will contextualize in immersive and engaging ways exactly how 5G will change our lives and businesses. At Ericsson, we believe limitless connectivity will have massive implications for everyone across the GCC. 5G has the power to open new markets and market niches in many industries, create efficiencies not yet fully realized such as the automation of business processes in digital and physical tasks.
Meanwhile, consumers see 5G evolving new mobile services in areas like entertainment, gaming and education. Considering the high demand, 5G represents a great potential for service providers to create and capture new value in the consumer business. And at the same time, with digitalization at full speed – together with technological advancements of 5G, cloud, edge computing and AI – a whole new set of opportunities have opened up for enterprises to redefine and grow their business, for governments to enhance and improve mission critical services, and for CSPs to explore and thrive in the enterprise segment.
All in all, GITEX is a time to reassess what the past 18 months has actually meant for disruption. Yes, our lives have been affected but disruption has meant something very different in the past few years. It has meant taking challenges and turning everything into a solution. 5G has done just that and the knock-on effect to other technologies, to lives and to business, will show its vast potential. That’s why GITEX Technology 2021 is worth a visit. I hope to see you at the Ericsson stand!
