The construction of new generation communication network is accelerated to enable multi-scenario applications in the intelligent era.

"'Six Networks' Construction Refreshes 'Progress Bar'" Series 4 Report

What new experiences in the intelligent era will the new generation of communication networks bring?

Humanoid robots that are flexible and smart and can serve as tour guides for tourists in scenic spots; unmanned transport vehicles that respond stably and can be remotely controlled in factories; intelligent connected cars that provide diverse intelligent services on the highway... Smart devices that are integrated into all aspects of life can be applied on a large scale, and they are all inseparable from the support of communication networks.

Currently, China is accelerating the construction of a new generation of communications networks, promoting related infrastructure upgrades and cutting-edge technological innovations, and continuing to improve the integrated information and communications layout of air, space, ground and sea.

1 Communication infrastructure is developing rapidly and steadily

The information and communication industry is a basic industry for national economy and social development. After years of construction, China has built the world's largest and most technologically advanced communications network facilities, achieving "counties with Gigabit connectivity, every township with 5G, and every village with broadband."

According to data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, as of the end of July, the total number of 5G base stations nationwide reached 5.154 million, a net increase of 316,000 from the end of the previous year; 5G mobile phone users reached 1.303 billion; the number of Internet broadband access ports nationwide reached 1.27 billion, and the number of 10G PON ports with gigabit network service capabilities reached 33.04 million.

At the same time, the construction and layout of the new generation communication network is gradually unfolding. The construction of 5G-A commercial networks is actively promoted, and 10G optical networks have been deployed on pilot projects in communities, factories, parks and other scenarios. The first phase of 6G technology test goals has been completed, and the second phase of testing is underway.

The "Fifteenth Five-Year Plan for the Development of the Information and Communications Industry" recently released by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology proposes that by 2030, a new generation of communications network with complete coverage and leading performance will be fully built, and the formation of a technologically advanced, safe and controllable information and communications industry system will be accelerated, and the modernization of the information and communications industry will take solid steps.

What’s new in the new generation of communication networks?

"The new generation communication network is not only a network upgrade in the traditional sense, but also a key innovation for digital information infrastructure in the intelligent era." At the press conference of the State Council Information Office held in July, Xie Cun, spokesperson of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, said that the new generation communication network has many innovations. In terms of connection objects, it has expanded from traditional individual users to diverse subjects such as people, machines, objects, and embodied intelligence; in terms of coverage, it has broken through traditional ground restrictions and expanded to integrated full-area coverage of air, space, earth, and sea; in terms of connection capabilities, it has greatly improved certainty and stability to better meet the differentiated needs of industry applications; in terms of network functions, it has evolved from simple information transmission to deep integration of communication, perception, computing, intelligence, security, and other capabilities.

What new technologies does the new generation communication network cover?

Zhao Wenyu, deputy director of the Technology and Standards Research Institute of the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, pointed out that the use of new technologies to build new networks and upgrade existing networks can be included in the scope of new generation communication networks. "It not only includes the basic network composed of 5G-A/6G network, optical network and data communication network, the space network with satellite Internet as the main body, the converged network covering the industrial Internet, low-altitude intelligent Internet, etc., but also includes the emergency communication network that serves emergency communication support, etc."

These new technologies are delivering better experiences.

For example, 5G-A is an enhanced version of 5G. As an important stage in the evolution from 5G to 6G, 5G-A has further improved in terms of capacity, speed, delay, positioning and reliability. For ordinary users, watching live broadcasts and videos can provide a smoother and immersive experience; for drones and robots, multi-channel high-definition videos can be uploaded stably and control instructions can be returned in time. The more cutting-edge 6G technology is moving from technical reserve to solution verification. In May this year, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology approved the use of 6G test frequency licenses in the 6GHz band in some areas, providing conditions for prototypes to enter real environment testing.

2 The Internet connects the sky, the earth, and the sea

In the past, high mountains and canyons, isolated islands in the distant sea, and uninhabited deserts were often "blind spots" for communication signals. The new generation communication network has expanded to cover the whole area integrating air, space, ground and sea, and has accumulated many key technology reserves, providing new development paths for emergency disaster prevention, low-altitude economy, ocean development and other application scenarios.

In Chengdu, Sichuan, the meteorological department independently developed a rainfall monitoring station in an uninhabited area. By integrating Tiantong satellite and long-distance radio networking technology, it can extend the lead time of flash flood and debris flow warnings during the flood control period.

In the Dream Town of Hangzhou, Zhejiang, the first 5G-A+ multi-mode 600-meter low-altitude intelligent network demonstration zone has been put into operation. The low-altitude intelligent network and "China Mobile Lingyun" platform built by Zhejiang Mobile integrate 5G-A synaesthetic integration, 5G + Beidou high-precision positioning, digital twins, artificial intelligence research and judgment and other technologies, and can achieve precise management of low-altitude aircraft performing tasks such as urban governance, emergency rescue, and logistics distribution.

On the "Jilong Island" ship traveling between Dalian, Liaoning, and Yantai, Shandong, passengers are connected to the onboard network and can always make video calls during the 150-kilometer, approximately 6-hour voyage. This is due to the 5G network in the Liao-Shandong route. After continuous upgrades, the network covers an area of ​​more than 20,000 square kilometers and serves more than 5 million people every year. In addition to serving passengers, a smooth network can also help crews obtain real-time information about ports, waterways and cargo; in the event of danger, on-site images can be transmitted back to the search and rescue command center, and linked to drones, unmanned boats and other forces, making it possible to "see, hear and transmit back" at sea.

In Songjiang District, Shanghai, the 6G Future Industry Cultivation Zone plans a construction area of ​​about 1 square kilometer. It plans to cultivate a number of leading enterprises by 2030 and strive to achieve an industry scale of over 100 billion yuan. The agglomeration of enterprises has gradually connected satellites in the sky, base stations on the ground and terminals in hand, and the integration of space, space and ground has begun to take shape. In 2025, the park was selected into the new track of "6G and satellite air, space and ground integrated chips" in the National High-tech Zone of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

The integration of air, sky, earth and sea is not simply adding up several networks, but allowing them to coordinate and schedule under a unified architecture. Among the 26 key tasks proposed in the "15th Five-Year Plan for the Development of the Information and Communication Industry", it includes "building a space network that integrates space and earth" and proposes a number of measures, such as "enhancing the network service capabilities of low-orbit satellite Internet, high-orbit satellite communication system, satellite Internet of Things, etc."; "promoting the deep integration of satellite networks and ground communication networks, and coordinating the construction of satellite-ground interconnection centers". center, carry out applications such as direct connection of mobile phones to satellites and satellite Internet of Things"; "make full use of terrestrial communication facilities such as 5G/5G-A to promote low-altitude communication network coverage on demand"; "actively explore the deployment of 5G ground-to-air communications (5G-ATG), expand the scale of route technology trials in a timely manner, and promote the development of airborne communications"; "promote the integrated development of '5G + Beidou'", etc.

3 Intelligent connection of all things activates kinetic energy

Building a new generation of communication networks can drive the upgrading of traditional industries and provide support for the development of intelligent manufacturing, artificial intelligence, digital consumption and other industries.

At the Yimin open-pit mine of Huaneng Yimin Coal and Electricity Company in Hulunbuir, Inner Mongolia, one hundred unmanned electric mining trucks with a load of 90 tons work together. This is the world's first open-pit mine to achieve large-scale "vehicle-cloud-network" collaboration under the 5G-A network.

These mining trucks are equipped with lidar, millimeter-wave radar and cameras, which can stably sense and automatically circumvent obstacles in low-light environments such as snow, sand, and night with 40-meter visibility. Remote control of 100 vehicles and high-definition video backhaul require extremely high network uplink capacity. By deploying a 5G-A network, a single base station can cover 500 to 600 meters, meeting stable uploads of 500 megabits per second and low latency of 20 milliseconds.

At the Chongqing Changan Automobile Digital Intelligence Factory, thousands of intelligent equipment, robots, smart AGVs, etc. are operating in an orderly manner. The large-scale factory completely uses 5G end-to-end features to connect production equipment, personnel, materials, and process data, achieving a network of more than 12,000 devices and collecting data at 1 million points per second. 5G, industrial Internet and artificial intelligence collaborate, and production, quality inspection, logistics and other links are connected in series on the same data chain.

According to Xie Cun, current information and communication technology is deeply empowering the real economy. As of the first half of this year, more than 80,000 5G industry virtual private networks have been built across the country. 5G and Gigabit optical network applications have been integrated into 94 major categories of the national economy. There are more than 26,000 "5G + industrial Internet" projects under construction nationwide, and 1,260 classified and distinctive 5G factories have been built.

For mass consumption, the new generation of communication networks will also give rise to more digital experiences. The types of smart terminals based on 5G are constantly enriched, and products such as artificial intelligence mobile phones and computers, intelligent robots, AI glasses, and AI toys have become new hot spots in information consumption. In the future, new generations of smart products such as 6G smartphones are expected.

As the information base of the "Six Networks", the new generation communication network is also empowering the intelligent upgrade of other infrastructure.

Xie Cun said that the next step will be to promote the new generation communication network to deeply empower water networks, new power grids, urban underground pipe networks, and logistics networks, and rely on network capabilities to achieve status awareness, remote dispatch, and intelligent operation and maintenance of various infrastructures. For example, with the help of communication networks, water networks can realize real-time backhaul of hydrological data; new power grids rely on high-speed networks to complete coordinated dispatching of massive power equipment; urban underground pipe networks rely on networks to monitor hidden dangers; logistics networks rely on networks to realize full-link tracking and dispatching of goods, etc.

Source: People's Daily Overseas Edition Reporter: Li Zhen