Huawei Technologies have partnered with China’s three major telecom companies to install 5G infrastructure on Mount Everest.
The group shall scale the 6,500-meter altitude to install the last base station for the 5G connection. Moreover, China is expected to be the world’s biggest 5G market. In 2025, the country will comprise up to 40% of the world’s total 5G users.
The country is already fast-tracking the installation of 5G sites across the country while other countries are still discussing security issues posed by Chinese technology. China currently has 150,000 5G base stations across 50 cities in the country. The Central Government expects to have the number increased up to 500,000 before the year ends.
Mount Everest, the highest 5G-equipped landmark
Last April 19, China Mobile, China Unicom, China Telecom, and Huawei Technologies all teamed up to blanket Mount Everest with 5G signal connections. The initial ascend was covered in a 24-hour live stream video that was followed by almost six million viewers.
The team had to bring a lot of pieces of equipment with a total weight of eight tons up the mountain. They also had to lay down kilometric 5G transmission to power the 5G macro base stations.
The first three 5G base stations were installed on the 5,300 meters and 5,800-meter altitude points. Two more base stations will be installed on April 25 in the even higher, 6,500 meters, altitude. According to the company’s blog post,
‘The climb is not only another extreme challenge in a human life exclusion zone, but also laid a solid foundation for the later development of 5G smart tourism and 5G communications for scientific research’
A sound explanation for the installation
According to the team, the installation was done to show the companies’ genuine commitment to providing the entire country with reliable 5G connections. The decision to scale the mountain was to debunk the rumors that the Coronavirus disease has halted its operations.
According to rumors and reports, the virus has paralyzed the rollout of the 5G base stations across the country. The company didn’t take these rumors lightly as it would mean that the delayed rollout would disappointment the Central Government.
U.K.’s 5G rollout under debate
China is already busy rolling out the 5G base stations throughout the country. On the other hand, the U.K. Parliament is set on blocking the way of Huawei in the country’s 5G rollout. The government is faced with a heavy battle not only with Coronavirus but also with the fear of a security breach by Huawei’s 5G technologies.
The decision on the matter will soon be released, but the U.K. is not the only country with these fears. The U.S. also has the security threat of Huawei’s technology considered in their 5G rollout.
Image courtesy of Kalle Kortelainen/ Unsplash