In its August 2021 reporton the Asian mobile economy, the cellular industry association GSMA noted that 4G will remain the dominant technology in Asia-Pacific for the foreseeable future, but it said “a second wave of 5G network rollouts has begun in Asia-Pacific”.
And in fact that 5G deployment wave is under way, to varying degrees. Network World Asia has surveyed the state of 5G across Southeast Asia.
5G in Brunei Darussalam
Brunei launched a proof-of-concept 5G networkin April 2021, supported by the ational Authority of Info-Communications Technology Industry (AITI) and the Ministry of Transport and Infocommunication (MTIC). It provided limited coverage in selected hot spots: outdoor coverage at the Airport Mall, Mulia Hotel, and Universiti Teknologi Brunei and indoor coverage of the mall’s ground floor and the design and technology building in Anggerek Desa.
In January 2021, Norshahrul Nizam Othman, a member of theNational 5G Task Force, said that the country aimed to launch commercial 5G services in mid-2022. There have been no further announcements.