The emerging 5G mobile communications technology is expected to help the global telecoms industry to create $3.5 trillion of output and generate 22 million jobs by 2035, according to a Qualcomm report. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Local groups scramble to gain competitive edge as technology becomes a reality

Chinese companies are scrambling to gain a lead in the race to commercialize 5G－or the next-generation mobile communication technology－as the country evolves from being a follower into a pioneering player in the global telecoms arena.

The super-fast 5G network is expected to allow consumers to download an 8-gigabit movie in seconds and help to make autonomous driving a reality, causing ripples across most industries and sectors in a new internet revolution.

The mobile technology is so important that it was highlighted in the government work report delivered by Premier Li Keqiang during this year's National People's Congress session in March. A report by the China Academy of Information and Communication Technology predicted that 5G will drive 6.3 trillion yuan ($946.8 billion) of economic output in the country by 2030.

China Mobile Communications Corp, the world's largest telecoms carrier by subscribers, said it aims to deploy more than 10,000 5G base stations by 2020 and aims to launch a pre-commercial 5G service in 2018.

Last November, the Beijing-based company outgunned foreign rivals to lead the global 5G System Architecture project, which it said will determine the "structure of 5G networks".

It came shortly after polar coding, a technology backed by Chinese telecoms equipment maker Huawei Technologies Co Ltd, was approved as part of the global standards for 5G.