Main Service Types Considered for 5G

After several years of research and standardization on 5G wireless and mobile communications,
there is broad consensus on the fact that 5G will not just be a simple evolution of 4G networks with
new spectrum bands, higher spectral efficiencies and higher peak throughput, but also target new
services and business models. In this respect, the main 5G service types typically considered are:

● Enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), related to human‐centric and enhanced access to multimedia
content, services and data with improved performance and increasingly seamless user experience.
This service type, which can be seen as an evolution of the services nowadays provided by
4G networks, covers UCs with very different requirements, e.g. ranging from hotspot UCs characterized
by a high user density, very high traffic capacity and low user mobility, to wide area coverage
cases with medium to high user mobility, but the need for seamless radio coverage practically
anywhere and anytime with visibly improved user data rates compared to today;

● Ultra‐reliable and low-latency communications (URLLC), related to UCs with stringent requirements
for capabilities such as latency, reliability and availability. Examples include the wireless
control of industrial manufacturing or production processes, remote medical surgery, distribution
automation in a smart grid, transportation safety, etc. It is expected that URLLC services
will provide a main part of the fundament for the 4th industrial revolution (often referred to as
Industry 4.0) and have a substantial impact on industries far beyond the information and communication
technology (ICT) industry;

● Massive machine‐type communications (mMTC), capturing services that are characterized by
a very large number of connected devices typically transmitting a relatively low volume of nondelay‐
sensitive data. However, the key challenge is here that devices are usually required to be
low-cost, and have a very long battery lifetime. Key examples for this service type would be logistics
applications (e.g., involving the tracking of tagged objects), smart metering, or for instance
agricultural applications where small, low‐cost and low‐power sensors are sprinkled over large
areas to measure ground humidity, fertility, etc.

Reference :

5G System Design
Architectural and Functional Considerations and Long Term Research