On July 19, Zhao Zhiguo, spokesman and chief engineer of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, stated at a press conference on the development of industry and information technology in the first half of 2023 that my country has built and opened a total of 2.937 million 5G base stations, 5G mobile phone users reached 676 million, and mobile Internet of Things terminal users exceeded 2.12 billion.

Zhao Zhiguo said that in the first half of the year, the enabling role of the information and communication industry continued to increase. my country has strengthened the construction of new information infrastructure and vigorously promoted the deep integration of the digital economy and the real economy. The industry as a whole is booming. In the first six months, the revenue of telecom business increased by 6.2%, and the total business volume increased by 17.1% year-on-year. A total of 2.937 million 5G base stations were built and opened, 5G mobile phone users reached 676 million, and mobile Internet of Things terminal users exceeded 2.12 billion. Empowering the transformation and upgrading of the real economy. 5G applications have been integrated into 60 major categories of the national economy, and the expansion and deepening of key areas such as industry, medical care, education, and transportation has been accelerated, and the cumulative number of application cases has exceeded 50,000. The Industrial Internet "Hundreds of Cities and Thousands of Gardens" has been promoted in depth, and the logo analysis system has served more than 270,000 enterprises, and there are more than 240 industrial Internet platforms with certain influence.

It has been four years since 5G was put into commercial use, and it has played an increasingly important role in promoting digital transformation. Zhao Zhiguo said that 5G has become an important component of new infrastructure and a key driver for promoting the digital transformation and upgrading of the real economy. Under the overall planning and deployment of the Party Central Committee and the State Council, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, together with all parties in the industry, deepened network coverage, joint construction and sharing, and further promoted the 5G application "sailing" action plan and "5G+Industrial Internet" integrated application, accelerating the maturity of the industry, running out of the "acceleration" of China's 5G development, effectively promoting the high-quality development of the mobile communication industry, and achieving positive results.

First, the network construction is steadily advancing. As of the end of June, the cumulative number of 5G base stations in my country reached 2.937 million, covering all prefecture-level cities and county towns, and the breadth and depth of coverage continued to expand. More than 1.73 million 5G base stations have been jointly built and shared, and the world's first 5G inter-network roaming trial commercialization has been launched. The 5G network has accelerated the development of intensive, efficient, green and low-carbon.

The second is the in-depth expansion of integrated applications. 5G industry applications have been integrated into 60 major categories of the national economy, and the number of application cases exceeds 50,000. Carry out the "100,000,000,000,000,000,000" 5G factory campaign, covering 12 key industries such as electronic information, equipment manufacturing, petrochemicals, and steel. 5G new calls, virtual digital human and other new applications are actively innovating, leveraging the steady growth of traffic consumption. 5G mobile phone users reached 676 million, and 5G traffic accounted for 42.9%.

The third is that the industrial foundation is becoming more and more solid. 5G lightweight core network, customized base stations and other network equipment are gradually implemented. The cost of industry terminals has been greatly reduced, and the price of 5G modules has dropped to 400 yuan. 5G terminal products are becoming more and more abundant. As of the end of June, 1,274 5G terminal products such as mobile phones, wireless CPE, wireless routers, and vehicle terminals have obtained network access permits. Released a new version of the radio frequency allocation regulations, and took the lead in using 6GHz allocation for 5G/6G systems in the world, leading innovation and development.

For the next step of development, Zhao Zhiguo said that the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology will steadily advance in accordance with the "construction, application and research" work idea, focus on three aspects of work, and provide more solid support for the construction of a manufacturing power, a network power, and digital China.

The first is to adhere to a moderate advance and build a solid 5G digital foundation. Actively promote the construction of 5G network, continue to expand the breadth and depth of 5G network coverage, promote the deep coverage of 5G network in key scenes in urban areas, and further extend to townships and rural areas. Carry out the special action of "signal upgrade" to comprehensively improve the quality of 5G network in key scenarios.

The second is to adhere to the policy of separating industries and expand the scale of 5G applications. Expand the application scale of leading fields such as industry, mining, electric power, and ports, and deeply explore typical application scenarios in pilot fields such as medical care, education, and cultural tourism. Create an upgraded version of "5G+Industrial Internet", and promote no less than 3,000 companies to build 5G factories this year. Strengthen the support of the 5G application industry, vigorously promote the research and development of 5G lightweight (RedCap) technology, and promote the continuous cost reduction and scale-up of 5G applications.

The third is to adhere to the leadership of innovation and promote the evolution of 5G and the research and development of 6G technology. Continue to evolve and upgrade to enhanced 5G, support 5G R18 base stations, 5G new terminals and other technological products, and continue to support new 5G features and new services. Vigorously promote 6G technology research, carry out technical experiments, deepen exchanges and cooperation, and accelerate 6G innovation and development.