Private 5G as a service is now a thing

A private 5G platform designed to offer the latest-generation licensed wireless technology to enterprise users as a service was announced today by Japanese telecom giant NTT. The company said its private 5G-as-a-service platform, which it calls P5G, would use CBRS, 4G/5G frequencies available as public licenses, and sub-6GHz bands in the US to provide businesses with their own 5G networks. The company said also that its platform is highly flexible, working with a wide variety of software standards and networking partners to ensure availability around the country. Private 5G, at least in the context of enterprise use, is just beginning to hit the upward curve of the hype cycle, according to a report published last month by Gartner Research. The upsides for private 5G, Gartner argued, are potentially immense. In combination with edge computing, the technology creates the possibility of transformative use cases in the industrial, automotive, and energy sectors. That’s because a private 5G network or even one that includes a virtual private network over public infrastructure for part of its functionality can guarantee throughput and latency levels that next-generation uses cases require.