Russian mobile network operator MegaFon has unveiled a new Moscow 5G site, launching the network with a video game tournament.
The ‘cybersport’ tournament, which featured the multiplayer battle arena game Dota 2, operated on a connectivity platform developed by MegaFon which combined 5G hardware provided by Huawei with cloud gaming capability provided by Loudplay; and enabled MegaFon to display the full potential of extending Moscow 5G connectivity.
The Moscow 5G pilot is projected to extend to Russia’s ‘Big Four’ main network operators by the end of 2019. Each operator will deploy its pilot 5G platform in a ‘priority area’ of Moscow selected by Russia’s State Commission on Radio Frequencies. The pilot process will enable operators to streamline the process of integrating 5G connectivity with earlier generation networks; as well as observing the functionality of the platforms and levels of accessibility offered. Moscow will open an additional 5G demonstration centre, aimed at trialling new technologies and initiatives operating on 5G connectivity; as well as allowing businesses to test their own 5G technologies.
Alexander Gorbatko, Deputy Head of Moscow’s Department of Information Technology, said: “5G opens up new opportunities in all sorts of areas for the citizens of Moscow. MegaFon and its partners have demonstrated the dramatic changes the fifth-generation network will bring to cloud gaming. There is now no need to buy the most powerful computer to use heavy content online. This concerns not only games, but also virtual tours and educational programmes. In the near future we will see 5G technologies changing the driverless transport sector, telemedicine and AR/VR, and our homes and cities will get ‘smarter’. We are supporting and facilitating the opening of pilot zones because they enable the market to test specific services, resulting in a high and secure standard of service for citizens and the creation of technology companies with highly paid jobs.”
