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China will step up efforts to boost development of 5G technology and explore more use scenarios for the technology in a wide range of sectors including industry, mineral mining and ports operation, with more than 3,000 enterprises expected to build 5G-wired factories in 2023, said Zhao Zhiguo, chief engineer of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), at a press briefing on Wednesday.
By the end of June, a total of 2.93 million 5G base stations have been put into services in China, with the number of 5G smartphone users reaching 676 million and the connected Internet of things (IoT) devices hitting 2.12 billion, according to the ministry.Â
5G has been applied in 60 major economic categories in China and is expanding to sectors including manufacturing, medical treatment, education and transport. The amount of use scenarios has reached over 50,000 types, Zhao said.
The ministry supports institutions and companies to make breakthroughs in 5G R18 base stations and new types of 5G terminals to support new 5G-enabled new services, he said.
The country will also accelerate research and development of next-generation 6G technology and deepen cooperation and exchanges so as to build solid foundation for developing China into a manufacturing and internet power as well as contribute to the building of digital China, he said.
Meanwhile, China will further expand the high-level opening-up of the manufacturing and information communications industries, make inter-government cooperation mechanism comes into play, safeguard the security and stability of industrial and supply chains, participate in global digital governance through international organizations and multilateral platforms, and foster cooperation in digital economy, he said.