Despite the ongoing proxy battle with Broadcom for its control, Qualcomm continues to move forward with 5G technology, announcing a successful test Monday in South Korea.
The San Diego-based wireless pioneer said it tested multi-vendor operation of new 5G cellular radios with Samsung Electronics and KT Corporation, demonstrating multi-gigabit download speeds. Qualcomm hailed the test as “a significant milestone” in the rollout of 5G.
“As the industry works toward the goal of commercial launches of 5G NR products and networks in 2019, close collaboration among global mobile industry leaders on testing and successful trials are necessary to validate the technologies and continue to build and improve our capabilities,” said Cristiano Amon, president of Qualcomm. “We are proud of our achievement with Samsung and KT and look forward to further collaboration on the path to making 5G a commercial reality.”
The live demonstration was held in Samsung’s lab in Suwon, South Korea.
Some industry observers have said that Broadcom’s hostile takeover attempt could slow the roll out of 5G, which Qualcomm has promised by 2019.
Broadcom, which is based in Singapore but moving to San Jose, is offering $120 billion for Qualcomm, a bid that has twice been rejected by Qualcomm’s board.
5G stands for 5th generation wireless system and promises a tenfold increase in speed from the current 4G. For example, with 5G a full HD movie can be downloaded in a matter of seconds.
