On June 26, SK Telecom announced that a research paper by its team on sixth-generation mobile communication (6G) technology will be published in the internationally renowned academic journal, IEEE Communications Magazine.
IEEE Communications Magazine is considered one of the most influential international journals in the field of communications. According to the journal citation report published by Clarivate Analytics, it ranks in the top 4% in the field of electrical engineering and top 4.5% in telecommunications, making it an SCI-level journal.
The paper titled ‘6G from the Perspective of Mobile Operators’ comprehensively describes crucial factors such as AI, sensing, and frequency, which are considered vital for establishing a vision for 6G communication from the viewpoint of telecom service providers.
This paper follows the approval of the ‘6G Vision’ recommendation by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) last year and was co-authored by Professor Park Se-woong from Seoul National University and Professor Choi Jeong-sik from Kyungpook National University. Its timely presentation notably indicates the future direction of global 6G evolution. The paper is scheduled to be officially published in the IEEE Communications Magazine in August.
In this paper, SK Telecom emphasizes ‘Lessons Learned from 5G.’ Based on their experience in commercializing and operating the world’s first 5G services, they outline the realistic requirements needed to realize anticipated services in the 6G era.
While considering next-generation mobile communications, SK Telecom argues that instead of vague expectations for faster speeds compared to previous generations, it is essential to understand the characteristics of frequencies and explore application fields. They assert that new services across various industries must be supported to create a thriving ecosystem.
The paper particularly highlights the importance of integrating communication with AI as a core element of 6G. AI is expected not only to enhance the performance of 6G in areas like network optimization, resource management, and user experience improvements but also to converge with mobile communications to drive innovation across various sectors.
Along with the publication in IEEE Communications Magazine, SK Telecom plans to continue contributing to the academic research domain on 6G evolution by also participating as lead and co-authors in international conferences like the Korean Telecommunications Society conference and IEEE PIMRC 2024.
On the 19th of this month, they presented an overview of ‘AI Native Wireless Access Networks and Directions’ and ‘Optimal Network Design Based on 6G Simulators’ at the Korean Telecommunications Society. In September, they are expected to present a comparative analysis of path loss in the 28-140 GHz frequency band under identical conditions at IEEE PIMRC 2024.
Last year, SK Telecom released the first 6G white paper as a service provider, outlining the core requirements of 6G mobile communications and future network evolution directions. Subsequently, they have focused on research activities such as patent applications, standardization contributions, and paper presentations to secure essential technologies for the evolutionary infrastructure known as ‘Telco Edge AI Infrastructure.’
‘Telco Edge AI Infrastructure’ is a technology that alleviates the computational burden centered on the cloud through edge computing and enhances the value of mobile networks by combining AI solutions to perform AI inference.
In addition to hosting the ‘O-RAN Alliance Standard Meeting’ for the first time as a Korean company this month, SK Telecom has also suggested the importance and need for standardization of ‘Telco Edge AI Infrastructure’ at workshops and sessions conducted by the 3GPP, the mobile communication standardization technical cooperation organization, in May.
Furthermore, they plan to strengthen their position as a leading company through continued efforts like publishing white papers related to ‘Telco Edge AI Infrastructure’, presenting technical papers, and engaging in standardization activities.
Meanwhile, SK Telecom is also continuing to enhance the ‘6G Simulator,’ which it showcased at MWC 2024 as part of its research achievements in candidate frequency bands for 6G. The ‘6G Simulator’ is a technology that analyzes network performance in diverse environments like urban, densely populated urban, rural, and aerial networks to design optimal 6G networks.
Ryu Tak-ki, head of infrastructure technology at SK Telecom, stated, “We are continuously submitting papers to major journals and conferences to convey realistic considerations regarding 6G to both industry and academia,” and added, “We will strive to enhance our external credibility in SK Telecom’s next-generation infrastructure evolution technologies, which includes the combination of AI and communication technologies.”
Lee Sang-jin daedusj@autodiary.kr