The South Korean wireless telecommunications operator, SK Telecom, and Germany’s telecommunications leader, Deutsche Telekom, recently signed an agreement to set up a joint venture to innovate 5G technology. This venture will incorporate advanced 5G building expertise and leverage the growth in the global demand for 5G repeaters.
Both companies said their partnership will help complete the development of an advanced 5G/LTE dual-mode repeater that will give them an advantage in capturing a global market estimated, according to studies cited by the companies, to exceed $10 billion over the next three years. The JV is headquartered in Germany, and as a result, the work will begin in the European market. As stated in the announcement, each operator will manage 50% of the JV and will appoint an appropriate representative to manage the organization.
Tim Höttges, CEO of Deutsche Telekom commented: “Together with SKT we are able to develop new and innovative products which enhance customer experience. The first feedback from repeater customer trial has shown the value of our partnership for us, but more importantly, for our customers.”
As noted by the partners, there are no strong players that currently dominate the 5G repeater market. Both parties emphasized that by combining their strengths, they will be able to establish themselves as a leading alliance in the market. Furthermore, in the medium and long-term, the two companies will also seek to assess opportunities for collaboration in the areas of augmented reality and virtual reality services, mobile edge computing (MEC) and the application market.
The CEO of SK Telecom, Park Jung-ho, noted: “The partnership between SKT and Deutsche Telekom is very meaningful at a time when the world is heavily affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. The deepened bond between the two companies will play an important role as a bridge between Asia and Europe and lead us to new technologies that can bring greater value to humanity.”
