South Korea’s mobile operators added a total of 2.61 million 5G subscribers in the first quarter of the year, according to data from the carrier’s earnings statements.
Korean carrier KT added 785,000 5G subscribers in the first quarter.
KT had a total of 4.4 million 5G customers at the end of March, up from 3.62 million at end-Q1 2020.
The company had ended the first quarter of 2020 with 1.78 million customers in the 5G segment.
At the end of the first quarter of 2021, KT Corp had a total of 14.36 million subscribers, including 5G customers.
Meanwhile, rival operator SK Telecom ended the first quarter with a total of 6.74 million 5G subscribers after adding 1.25 million 5G lines during the period. The telco had 2.65 million 5G subscribers at the end of the first quarter of 2020.
The carrier ended Q1 2021 with 31.52 million mobile subscribers, almost flat year-on-year.
LG Uplus ended the first quarter with a total of 3.33 million subscribers in the 5G segment after an addition of 579,000 5G customers in the period.
The telco had 1.45 million 5G customers at end-March 2020.
Taking into account all mobile technologies, LG Uplus ended Q1 2021 with 16.98 million subscribers, up 9.4% year-on-year.
Last month, South Korea’s three major mobile operators said they will share their 5G networks in remote coastal and rural towns across the country with the aim of accelerating the rollout of 5G networks.
SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus signed an agreement so that 5G users can have access to 5G network regardless of the carrier they are subscribed to in 131 remote locations across South Korea, according to the Ministry of Science and ICT.
The ministry said the three carriers will test the network sharing system before the end of 2021 and aim for complete commercialization in phases by 2024.
In July of 2020, SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus had agreed to invest a total of KRW 25.7 trillion ($22 billion) through 2022 to boost 5G infrastructure across the country. This investment primarily focuses on enhancing 5G quality in Seoul and six other metropolitan cities.
South Korean telecom operators currently provide 5G services via non-standalone 5G networks, which depend on previous 4G LTE networks. The country’s three operators launched 5G technology in April 2019, and 5G networks are available mostly in large cities.
SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus are currently preparing to commercialize new technology, such as Standalone versions of the 5G networks and millimeter-wave 5G.
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