Park Yoon-kyu, 2nd Vice Minister of Science and ICT, "Let's Blossom Creative Destruction with 5G Specialized Networks"

Alliance Formed for 5G Specialized Network Ecosystem Among Government, Public, and Private Enterprises

Park Yoon-kyu, the 2nd Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and ICT (second from the right), is speaking at the "7th On-site Meeting for National Policy Tasks" held at Samsung Seoul Hospital.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-seon] The government, public sector, and private companies are joining forces to revitalize the 5th generation (5G) specialized network ecosystem. Park Yoon-kyu, the 2nd Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and ICT, held the "7th Digital National Agenda On-site Meeting" on the theme of "Activation of 5G Specialized Network-based Converged Services" at Samsung Seoul Hospital on the 26th.

The meeting was attended by more than 30 people including equipment manufacturers, SI companies, telecom operators, 5G specialized network suppliers, public and private demand institutions, academia, and experts. They shared prospects for the expansion of 5G specialized networks and discussed ways to create an industrial ecosystem to secure a leading position in the global market. The Ministry of Science and ICT is promoting a demonstration project (5G Converged Services Project) this year to create an initial market for 5G specialized networks, securing use cases (references) in eight fields including medical care, logistics, and safety. Forty-two companies and institutions are participating in the demonstration project.

Chawoncheol, Director of the Digital Innovation Center at Samsung Seoul Hospital, who presented at the meeting, introduced digital transformation strategies in seven major areas including medical treatment, patient services, and logistics under the theme of "Digital Transformation Cases of 5G-based Hospitals." Samsung Electronics, selected as a demonstration project participant in the industrial convergence expansion project in the education field, applied 28GHz communication technology together with KT to medical clinical sites. The surgical scenes conducted by surgeons are filmed in high-definition video using augmented reality glasses or endoscopes and then transmitted to a medical education platform using the 5G specialized network. Additionally, virtual-based surgical education, ward rounds education, and emergency surgical skills training will be implemented and applied to clinical sites.

Shin Hoon-sik, Head of the Public Infrastructure Group at SK Networks Service, shared the future of promising services based on specialized networks from the private sector perspective under the theme of "Current Status and Expansion Prospects of 5G Specialized Networks at Home and Abroad." Shin predicted, "Various services combined with robots in the manufacturing sector are possible," and added, "Specialized networks will continue to grow."

Corporate representatives requested government support to discover and secure 5G specialized network-based converged services. They also mentioned the need to create an environment where active cooperation through information sharing between supply and demand companies, as well as between the public and private sectors, can occur to revitalize the ecosystem.

Vice Minister Park Yoon-kyu emphasized, "We plan to launch the '5G Specialized Network Alliance' this year to establish a 5G converged ecosystem led by the private sector, and the government will act as a bridge for the 5G-related ecosystem," adding, "For the expansion of 5G specialized networks and converged services, countless new combinations between fields and companies must occur, allowing creative destruction to flourish." He continued, "We will support companies so that they can lead the global market through competition and cooperation."