The fifth generation (5G) of cellular communication technology will be arriving soon, and it promises to revolutionize the business of cloud-based Software as a Service (SaaS) applications.
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Internet technology that depends on real-time communications and high bandwidth will become more practical once 5G rolls out.
In this article, we’ll look at the specific ways 5G will impact cloud-based businesses like yours.
5G vs. 4G
5G has been hyped because of the major upgrade it represents from the bandwidth, power use, and latency of 4G connections.
5G mobile phones will be capable of receiving up to 100 gigabytes of data per second, which is nearly 100 times faster than 4G.
5G technology will also substantially reduce the power consumption of data transfers dramatically. These power savings will make batteries last longer and help conserve energy on future power grids.
What Does 5G Mean For Technology in The Future?
The bandwidth that 5G will make possible isn’t available with traditional internet service. As a result, mobile devices will become the platform of choice for cloud-based technologies that need increased bandwidth.
Applications that need to send large amounts of data to remote servers will be the ones impacted the most, and 5G will make applications possible that are currently impractical with 4G devices.
Examples include industrial Internet of Things (IoT) applications that need to send data from thousands of sensors to remote servers in real-time to improve operational efficiency.
Home automation, security systems, and personal assistants are another example of IoT applications that require high bandwidth to make real-time communications practical.
5G also promises to improve virtual and augmented reality applications that stream video and graphics feeds over the internet. The reduction of latency will make these applications feel more realistic than they currently do and make more sophisticated simulations possible.
These technologies may be able to break out of their current entertainment niche and achieve better adoption rates among commercial clients like retail stores, healthcare providers, and travel agencies.
What 5G Will Mean for Cloud-Based Services
Mobile applications that depend on communications with remote cloud services will become attractive to a larger base of business customers after 5G is widely available.
Unified communications that have been gaining acceptance among businesses for their customer interactions will become more attractive once they implement 5G’s bandwidth and responsiveness.
5G capabilities will make it possible to improve mobile apps that communicate with remote servers by removing bandwidth and latency constraints. Currently, developers must carefully balance the amount of data mobile apps send to servers to ensure that user experience isn’t impacted.
5G will eliminate these limitations.
The result will be a new explosion of mobile app innovation as developers reassess what they can do with their apps and create new applications that weren’t possible before.
In addition to allowing developers to improve the applications they offer, 5G will also give them access to new markets that haven’t had access to broadband internet.
Rural Customers
One segment of the internet user market that continues to miss out on broadband speeds are rural households that don’t have access to fiber-optic networks through their local ISPs.
5G will give them access to those speeds.
The same situation exists for overseas customers in countries that depend heavily on mobile infrastructure to deliver internet access.
5G will bring broadband speeds to both groups, opening new markets for cloud services that are currently practical only to urban customers in advanced countries.
Enterprise Customers
Another group that 5G-enabled cloud applications will serve better is remote enterprise users.
Data-intensive applications like big data and data processors will be able to communicate more reliably with mobile app users wherever they are located.
Mobile apps can serve as terminal interfaces to these applications that traditionally have been limited to office workstations.
For example, industrial service technicians will be able to access virtual reality simulations of machine assemblies in the field.
They’ll be able to interact with them using mobile devices or headsets thanks to the bandwidth of 5G.
Livestream services also will be able to provide higher resolution video feeds.
How to Prepare Your Cloud Service For 5G
The changes that 5G will bring to the industry will transform several facets of your business beyond the applications you deliver to your customers.
You’ll need to carefully plan your investments to fully leverage 5G when it’s adopted.
Invest in Virtual Networks
It’ll be crucial to assess your network’s ability to move and process the amount of data that 5G makes possible. Otherwise, your customers will encounter bottlenecks when you roll out your 5G-enabled apps.
Virtual networks will become an important way to defeat these potential bottlenecks. Just as the cloud made web hosting capacity an on-demand service, virtual networks can help cloud services manage 5G bandwidths.
Invest in Mobile Security
The other potential weakness that 5G will expose is mobile cybersecurity. As more customers access your service through their mobile devices, your business will become easier for cybercriminals to target through the connections those devices make to your network.
Ashley Wilson is a digital nomad writing about business and tech. She has been known to reference Harry Potter quotes in casual conversation and enjoys baking homemade treats for her husband and their two felines, Lady and Gaga. You can get in touch with Ashley via Twitter.
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