The world is constantly evolving, with technology advancing at an incredible rate. Mobile cellular networks have become an integral part of our lives, connecting people from across the globe. Despite covering over 60% of the population, they still fall short, with less than 12% of the planet being connected. This is where Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN) come in, providing the missing link in global connectivity.
What is NTN
NTN, which combines terrestrial cellular networks and satellite technology, is set to be the next big thing in connectivity, revolutionizing the way we stay in touch. The groundwork for this technology is being laid in the latest 3GPP Release 17 standard, with 5G satellite services expected to begin rolling out this year and beyond.
Leading this initiative is MediaTek, the proponent and project leader of 3GPP NTN standardization, with an aim of creating an open NTN ecosystem that benefits the greatest number of people. With 5G NTN, they’re doing just that.
5G NTN comprises two levels of connectivity: IoT-NTN and NR-NTN. The former is designed for short-burst, low data-rate connections, such as for messaging or non-real-time data. It’s ideal for operations in remote areas, where cellular coverage is scarce, and can deliver essential services such as messaging and location services, agriculture, forestry, transportation, and logistics.
NR-NTN, on the other hand, fills the remaining cellular coverage gap with faster data rates, allowing users to make calls and use apps. It aims to deliver service to sparsely populated regions as well as across oceans, providing essential services like navigation and real-time communications.
A critical requirement of all NTN is that access poses no additional hardware or operational burden to end-users. It should exist and operate seamlessly in mainstream mass-market devices like smartphones, tablets, and Mi-Fi devices, while also being a part of a normal cellular subscription. Sharing the same protocol stack, modems can integrate both terrestrial and satellite technologies into a single, complete 5G solution that is capable of seamlessly switching between earth-bound and space networks in the same device.
MediaTek’s First-to-Market 5G NTN Solutions
While other companies are pursuing pre-5G era or proprietary satellite connectivity, MediaTek has become the main driver of 3GPP standards-based 5G NTN, leading the industry through its first-to-market 5G NTN solutions that will soon find their way into the hands of users globally.
Just this March, MediaTek demonstrated an industry-first live 5G NR-NTN connection using a smartphone powered by a MediaTek 5G modem with NR-NTN capability at MWC 2023. The achievement is key, as the MediaTek 5G NR-NTN solution meets 3GPP release 17 spectrum-defined functionalities, paving the way for a more connected future.
Emman has been writing technical and feature articles since 2010. Prior to this, he became one of the instructors at Asia Pacific College in 2008, and eventually landed a job as Business Analyst and Technical Writer at Integrated Open Source Solutions for almost 3 years.
