"I live in Seoul, but 5G doesn't work whenever I go into densely built-up areas. I'm upset because I pay expensive fees but can't use the service." (a person surnamed Yeon, a 30-something office worker who works in Songpa District, Seoul)
"I live in the station area in Daejeon, and 5G doesn't work at all at home. I can't get a signal even on the veranda, and I have to stretch my arm out the window to use it. At home I have to use LTE only." (a person surnamed Kim, a university student in her 20s living in Daejeon)
It has been six years since 5G (fifth-generation mobile communication) service was commercialized in Korea, but consumers remain dissatisfied with service quality. As of this year, the number of 5G base stations installed is one-third that of Long-Term Evolution (LTE), the 4G (fourth-generation mobile communication) standard. 5G speeds are only five times those of LTE. As the telecom industry has effectively wrapped up capital expenditure (CAPEX) on 5G, it faces criticism for turning its back on consumers. Experts said additional investment in 5G is needed to prepare for the coming 6G (sixth-generation mobile communication) and artificial intelligence (AI) era.
◇ The "first in 5G" title loses luster… fewer base stations and speeds stuck at five times LTE
On Apr. 2019, Korea became the first in the world to commercialize 5G service. But the much-heralded "5G" era is widely seen as effectively half-baked.
5G has a shorter reach than 4G, yet there are not enough base stations. According to data submitted by the office of Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Lee Jeong-heon to the Ministry of Science and ICT on the 18th, as of Sep., the number of 5G base stations stood at about one-third of LTE. There are 362,580 5G base stations installed nationwide, only 32% of the 1,105,429 LTE base stations. In particular, base stations installed indoors, underground, and in tunnels—areas often cited for poor 5G reception—account for just 14%, 2.4%, and 1.3% of the total, respectively.
Hong In-gi, a professor in the Department of Electronic Engineering at Kyunghee University, said, "In Korea, we use a non-stand alone (NSA) mode that shares 5G and LTE base stations, so even if 5G, which has a short reach, drops, you can still use the network by switching to LTE," adding, "Because LTE is so well built out now, service providers have little reason to add more 5G base stations."
5G speeds also fall short of expectations. According to the Ministry of Science and ICT, the average 5G transmission speed of the three domestic telecom companies last year was 1,025.52 Mbps, about six times faster than LTE (178.05 Mbps). That is less than half of the "20 times faster than LTE" speed promised by carriers when the service launched.
This is because the telecom industry shied away from aggressive investment from the outset of 5G service. 5G spectrum bands are largely divided into 28 GHz and 3.5 GHz. The "20 times faster than LTE" speeds touted by the industry can be realized in the 28 GHz band. But carriers abandoned investment, citing the high build-out expense and a lack of demand for 28 GHz. After the government reclaimed the 28 GHz spectrum, Korea ended up using "half-baked" 5G in the 3.5 GHz band.
◇ 65% of all lines are 5G… charging high fees while cutting infrastructure investment
While 5G subscribers increase every year and users pay high telecom bills, the industry is cutting infrastructure investment. According to the Ministry of Science and ICT, as of Jul., 37.5 million out of 57.42 million total lines—65%—were 5G subscriptions. The share of 5G subscribers, which started at 7% in 2019, has risen every year.
The reason 5G subscribers are increasing is that the telecom industry has steered customers into 5G plans by using subsidies as a pretext. Since most 5G plans are more expensive than LTE plans, converting existing LTE customers to 5G helps carriers improve profitability.
The three carriers' capital expenditure on infrastructure fell from 820.10 billion won in 2021 to 817.60 billion won in 2022 and 766.70 billion won in 2023, then plunged to 661.47 billion won last year. This year as well, the combined infrastructure investment of the three carriers in the first through third quarters was 369.20 billion won, down 7% from the same period last year (397.24 billion won).
Subscribers are paying for expensive 5G plans while having to use 5G and LTE together. In Korea, only KT has built a commercial 5G stand alone (SA) network, while SK Telecom and LG Uplus use the 5G non-stand alone method. NSA provides 5G service by relying on the LTE network. Because high-frequency 5G has a short range, when the signal drops, it switches to LTE.
Shin Cheol-won, Head of Team at the Consumer Sovereignty Citizens' Meeting, said, "There seems to be no prospect at the moment that carriers will spend money on 5G," adding, "By introducing integrated LTE and 5G plans, they believe using both simultaneously solves consolidation issues and therefore are no longer investing in infrastructure."
The government acknowledges criticism of 5G service but remains reluctant to increase the budget for quality improvements. Bae Kyung-hoon, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Ministry of Science and ICT, promised during this year's National Assembly audit to look into complaints that 5G service is inconvenient to use in some transportation facilities. However, the budget allocated for telecom service quality assessment fell from 1.645 billion won in 2023 to 1.415 billion won in 2024 and has been frozen through next year.
◇ "Additional investment is needed not only for 5G but also to transition to 6G"
Experts warned that the government's and the telecom industry's passive investment will eventually boomerang. 5G service quality is closely tied not only to everyday internet speeds but also to the growth potential of future businesses such as 6G (sixth-generation mobile communication) and artificial intelligence (AI). From ultra-high-speed data transmission to cloud and AI integration, the future IT industry begins with robust 5G infrastructure.
Mischa Dohler, vice president in charge of new technologies at Ericsson, visited Korea in Sep. and said, "5G is not a mere generational shift but a core infrastructure that will underpin an AI and AR-based platform economy," emphasizing the importance of infrastructure investment.
Ryu Je-myeong, the 2nd Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and ICT, said during the National Assembly audit in Oct., "It has been six years since 5G was introduced, so now there is a need to fully shift to the SA method," adding, "We are discussing this with the three mobile carriers."
Jang Kyung-hee, a professor in the Department of Electronic Engineering at Inha University, said, "It makes no sense to enter the 6G era without 5G investment," adding, "There are far too many things the government and the telecom industry promised to invest in for 5G but failed to carry out. We will not be able to make a quantum jump from 5G to 6G." She added, "If the current 5G system is not comprehensively reinforced, it will be difficult to advance future businesses such as AI."