[Summary] 5G Quality Evaluation in First Half: SKT Tops Speed and Stability... Coverage by LGU+, Multi-Facility by KT

Ministry of Science and ICT Announces '2021 5G Service Coverage Inspection and Quality Evaluation Interim Results'
SKT Leads in 5G Speed, LGU+ Tops Coverage, KT Ranks First in Multi-Facility Deployment

[Asia Economy Reporter Eunmo Koo] Despite controversies over the quality of 5th generation communication (5G), domestic 5G coverage and quality steadily improved in the first half of this year. Among operators, SK Telecom led in 'speed' and 'connection stability,' KT excelled in 'in-building coverage,' and LG Uplus was ahead in 'outdoor coverage' deployment.

First 5G Quality Evaluation of the Year... Improvements in Both Speed and Coverage

The Ministry of Science and ICT announced on the 31st the "2021 5G Service Coverage Inspection and Quality Evaluation Interim Results." The ministry releases 5G service quality evaluation results twice a year, in the first and second halves. The survey covers all administrative districts in 85 cities nationwide, and the investigation period was from May to July this year.

According to the ministry's announcement, the 5G download transmission speed of the three mobile carriers was 808.45 Mbps, and the upload transmission speed was 83.93 Mbps. Compared to the second half of last year, this represents an improvement of 117.98 Mbps (17.09%) in download speed and 20.61 Mbps (32.55%) in upload speed.

The LTE fallback rate, indicating the stability of the 5G network, averaged 1.22%. This means that 5G users connect to LTE instead of 5G about 1.22 times out of 100, an improvement from 5.49 times in the second half of last year. The average connection time, which refers to the time taken to initially connect to the network, was 41.76 ms for download and 40.34 ms for upload. Latency was 18.66 ms, and data loss rate was 0.29%, all improved compared to the previous year.

5G Service Quality Evaluation Results

As each company continued investing in 5G, overall 5G coverage also improved. For outdoor coverage, the average coverage of the three companies in 85 cities nationwide was 6,271.12 km², an expansion of 861.82 km² compared to 5,409.30 km² in the second half of last year. In Seoul and six major metropolitan cities, 5G was deployed in most urban areas excluding forested land, and in 78 small and medium-sized cities, 5G was built mainly in areas with dense floating populations and downtown areas where people live and work.

Coverage evaluation is conducted by the Ministry of Science and ICT based on coverage map data submitted by the three telecom companies. The ministry stated that the overstatement rate of the 5G coverage maps was 0% for all three companies.

Regarding major indoor facilities, as of April, among about 4,500 major multi-use facilities such as department stores, libraries, and airports, the number of facilities where 5G was available averaged 3,707 across the three companies, accounting for 82.4% of the total. The area within major multi-use facilities where stable 5G service connection was possible was 96.00%, an improvement from 90.99% in the second half of last year.

Transportation infrastructure also saw progress. As of April, the three companies had deployed 5G in 835 out of 1,028 subway stations nationwide. For high-speed rail (KTX and SRT), 5G was deployed in an average of 53 out of 54 stations and 51 out of 55 sections across the three companies. Notably, KT deployed 5G in all stations and sections. On highways, 5G was deployed in an average of 94 out of 141 major highway sections with heavy traffic among the three companies.

5G Service Coverage Status (As of May 2021)

SKT Leads in Speed, LG Uplus in Coverage

By carrier, SK Telecom boasted the fastest 5G speed. It recorded a download speed of 923.20 Mbps, significantly ahead of KT (782.21 Mbps) and LG Uplus (719.94 Mbps). In upload speed, SK Telecom (97.05 Mbps), KT (77.64 Mbps), and LG Uplus (77.10 Mbps) ranked in the same order.

Measured only with the 'Galaxy S20+' via the Korea Intelligent Information Society Agency (NIA) app, 5G download speeds were close to government evaluation results: SK Telecom at 920.07 Mbps, KT at 761.60 Mbps, and LG Uplus at 710.52 Mbps.

SK Telecom also showed the best latency performance at 17.34 ms, a key factor for 5G services such as cloud gaming and augmented/virtual reality (AR/VR). LG Uplus and KT recorded 19.20 ms and 19.43 ms, respectively. The LTE fallback rate, indicating connection stability, was also lowest for SK Telecom at 1.17% for downloads, ahead of LG Uplus (1.22%) and KT (1.26%). A lower number means higher service stability.

In terms of coverage area as of May, LG Uplus ranked first with a total service area of 6,805.25 km², followed by KT with 6,333.33 km². SK Telecom recorded the largest service area in Seoul at 501.52 km² but ranked third overall with 5,674.79 km². In addition, regarding 5G deployment in major facilities such as department stores and cinemas in 85 cities nationwide, KT led with 4,205 facilities, followed by SK Telecom (3,923) and LG Uplus (2,992).

Separately, after the first half inspection, the Ministry of Science and ICT announced that the 'August 5G outdoor coverage' disclosed by telecom companies averaged 12,433.10 km² across the three companies. In this tally, SK Telecom secured the widest coverage at 12,772.20 km², followed by LG Uplus (12,598.99 km²) and KT (11,928.1 km²).

Speeds Increased and Coverage Improved, but... "5G Still Has a Long Way to Go"

Although 5G service coverage has expanded and speeds have increased more than two years after commercialization, there are still concerns that the quality experienced by users has a long way to go. Some areas remain without 5G network deployment, making service unavailable, and quality issues such as call and device problems have been pointed out.

Jung Chang-rim, Director of Telecommunications Policy at the Ministry of Science and ICT, said at a pre-briefing the day before, "5G coverage and network stability, indicated by the LTE fallback rate, have improved, and foreign evaluation agencies also rate Korea's 5G quality as world-class," but added, "Coverage and quality still have a long way to go, and it is difficult to say that quality has improved enough for users to feel satisfied, so complaints from users continue."

He continued, "To resolve these negative perceptions, telecom companies need to work harder to expand network deployment, and application services utilizing the network should also be more widely spread. The government will continuously promote network investment by the three telecom companies through quality evaluations and will also work to introduce diverse and affordable plans related to pricing."