The European Commission and the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) have signed a partnership agreement to jointly support the development of 5G networks. The document was signed at the EU-China High Level Economic and Trade Dialogue in Beijing.
Under this Declaration, the EU and China will strengthen cooperation to reach a global understanding, by end-2015, on the concept, basic functionalities, key technologies and time plan for 5G; as well as explore possibilities in cooperating and implementing joint research actions in the area of 5G and to facilitate bilateral participation of enterprises in 5G research projects in China and the EU.
The EU and China will also jointly promote global standardisation for 5G, in support of ongoing standardisation work in relevant organisations such as the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). The EU and China will also cooperate in facilitating the identification of the most promising radio frequency bands to meet the new spectrum requirements for 5G; and jointly explore the possibilities for cooperative research on the services and applications for 5G, especially in the area of the IoT.
Both parties are committed to reciprocity and openness in terms of access to 5G networks research funding, market access as well as in membership of Chinese and EU 5G associations. The European Commission is investing EUR 700 million through the Horizon 2020 Programme to support research and innovation in 5G.
Also under the terms of the agreement, EU companies, particularly the EU telecoms and ICT industry are likely to have easier access to the Chinese market. In particular, European companies will be able to access and participate in China's publicly funded 5G research, development and innovation initiatives on the same terms as Chinese companies currently participate in the EU's 5G activities.
EU's 5G PPP Association and China's IMT-2020 (5G) Promotion Association have prepared, and are ready to sign, an industrial agreement as soon as the EU-China joint agreement on 5G is in place. 5G is expected to be commercially available from 2020.
