A 5G-connected robot performs at the China Mobile stand during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, in February. [Photo provided to China Daily]

To accelerate the path to 5G, MIIT also detailed frequency bands－both low, medium and high frequencies are involved－for the development of the super-fast networks in China.

"A frequency band is as important to telecoms carriers as land is in the real estate industry," said Fu Liang, an independent telecom analyst.

"Specifying the designated frequency band for 5G tests will motivate enterprises to channel resources to that band, thus promoting faster development."

Companies are also building up massive financial resources to exploit the opportunities that will come.

US investment bank Jefferies said China's mobile carriers will invest at least $173 billion in 5G construction from 2019-25, an increase of 48 percent on the total spend on 4G from 2013-20.

"5G will no longer be a simple technology or system," said Huang Yuhong, deputy head of the China Mobile Research Institute.

"Instead, it is a platform in which the telecoms industry needs to be deeply linked with other sectors. That is a fundamental difference between 5G and 4G."