What will 5G offer advertisers?

1. What is 5G?

5G is short for fifth generation mobile networks. Just in case you needed to know! It’s due for rollout in the UK in 2 years time and in other parts of the world including China, the first 5G phones will be released later this year. But, unlike 4G it could open up a whole new world of possibilities with mobile data.

2. What’s all the fuss about?

5G is going to be fast. A minimum expectation is for download speeds of 10Gpbs which is more than 1000 times faster than 4G. That means that you’ll be able to download an HD film in less than 10 seconds. China reckons their 5G network will reach speeds of 20Gpbs! Latency speeds will also be reduced so there will be no lags between you hitting the button and your new 5G phone responding. Great for the serious gamers out there.

3. What does it mean for advertisers?

Here’s a scenario. Imagine travelling home in your self-drive car and you call up Alexa to say that you fancy Teriyaki Chicken tonight and need the ingredients. You’re  directed you through the steps of the recipe and taken to your local store to pick up the ingredients which are there waiting for you.

That is. That’s the future, because 5G is able to exchange masses of data at very high speeds. Advertisers and publishers will see faster ad-load times across multiple devices. 5G will also be able to process more data, enabling higher-resolution ads, such as video and better personalized content in real time. With faster load times and higher resolutions, there will be a range of ad formats and pricing options and the way we can communicate with consumers will expand.

4. When will it become a reality?

It is likely to still be a few years before 5G becomes a commercial reality. And when it does there will also be a new set of standards. It will without doubt deliver a new age of connectivity defined by the billions of devices all pushing each other for internet access.