South Korea’s leading wireless operator, SK Telecom, has partnered with Finnish network equipment maker Nokia to sharply cut the latency between handsets and base stations on its LTE network—from about 25 milliseconds down to just 2 milliseconds—bringing the operator significantly closer to practical 5G performance.
This breakthrough in low-latency transmission is expected to accelerate development of a wide range of real-time applications, including autonomous driving, augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). Communications with 2ms latency can also enable systems that require instant remote monitoring and precise control of equipment, such as disaster response robots and other mission-critical robotics. Additionally, the technology should boost next-generation media experiences, for example high-fidelity 360° VR streaming.
Park Jin-hyo, senior vice president and head of the Network Technology R&D Center at SK Telecom, commented that low-latency technology is a core enabler for 5G-era services—autonomous vehicles, artificial intelligence-driven systems and immersive reality experiences among them. He added that SK Telecom will continue enhancing latency performance and integrating cutting-edge techniques into its LTE infrastructure to improve overall customer experience while progressing toward 5G evolution.
In a related development, SK Telecom has developed a 5G repeater based on its in-house 5G relay technology and deployed it on a trial 5G network near Seoul’s Gangnam Station. The operator says this deployment marks a significant milestone because Gangnam is a particularly challenging environment: dense urban clutter creates many radio-wave obstacles and the area experiences very high data traffic.
The 5G repeater is designed to amplify radio signals in coverage “blanket” and shadow zones, improving signal strength and quality where direct paths from base stations are blocked or attenuated. This capability helps address the coverage constraints associated with millimeter-wave and other high-frequency bands (above 6 GHz), where propagation range and penetration are limited compared with lower-frequency spectrum.
SK Telecom’s dual focus on ultra-low latency and improved high-frequency coverage reflects a pragmatic approach to bridging current LTE deployments with future 5G services—optimizing today’s networks while preparing for the wider rollout of next-generation mobile technologies.