T he Committee has chosen to publish material submitted to its inquiry into broadband and 5G. Publication does not indicate any endorsement of the views expressed or validate any claims within that material.

You can read about our inquiry here: https://committees.parliament.uk/work/89/broadband-and-the-road-to-5g/publications/

Full Fact have published information about 5G conspiracies: https://fullfact.org/online/5g-and-coronavirus-conspiracy-theories-came/

You can find out how to spot false information online here: https://sharechecklist.gov.uk/

Written evidence submitted by RootMetrics

DCMS Select Committee – Broadband and the road to 5G Inquiry

Executive Summary

RootMetrics combines scientific data with real-world mobile performance insights to provide consumers with an independent view of each operator’s performance where they live, work and play. Every six months RootMetrics conducts testing across all the major UK carrier networks from nation to neighbourhood, with tests conducted across major metropolitan markets, cities and towns of all sizes, rural areas and the highways that connect them.

For example, during the second half of 2019, RootMetrics scouters drove 21,535 miles, visited 811 indoor locations, and conducted more than 593,000 scientific tests of mobile performance. UK-wide, nation [1], and metro tests were conducted using unmodified, off-the-shelf Samsung Galaxy S9 smartphones purchased from operator stores to test EE, O2, Three and Vodafone . RootMetrics uses random sampling techniques to ensure results offer a robust characterisation of performance across six testing categories, including overall performance, reliability, speed, data performance, call performance, and text performance.

RootMetrics, the industry leader for testing mobile network performance, has recently published a three-part First Look Report [2][3][4]on 5G in the UK, offering key data and insights on the promise, potential, and real-world performance of early 5G deployments in the UK. The 5G speeds recorded by RootMetrics will help change the mobile experience in key regions of the UK, impacting both businesses and industries using 5G to power new tools and processes, to consumers watching videos to streaming football matches (see Fig 1) that could eventually offer expanded in-play analysis and more. The same impact will be felt across businesses where faster data speeds will lead to more efficiencies and allow processing of more data, which is vital to a company that is looking to scale up [5].

Throughout our response to this Select Committee Inquiry, RootMetrics advocates for the need for consumers to have independent, robust, and reliable access to reporting on connectivity performance in their area. We believe that when consumers have access to objective, real-world performance information, they can make informed decisions about how to take advantage of new technologies that become available to them. They will understand how connectivity can power new experiences, both in their personal lives and in their businesses.

This is particularly important for 5G technology, because it can be used to power ‘business critical’ infrastructure like autonomous vehicles or Internet of Things powered machinery used in the workplace. Businesses will not invest in those technologies if they do not have confidence that 5G technology can deliver the performance they need.

In turn, good decision-making by consumers and businesses drives more competition in the telecoms sector and boosts investment across the country. We passionately believe in the value of our scientific approach to testing 5G connectivity and would be pleased to share our insights and understanding with the Select Committee in further detail.

Kevin Hasley

Chief Commercial Officer, RootMetrics

How realistic is the Government’s ambition of nationwide gigabit-capable broadband by 2025, and what measures (regulatory, financial, technical, other) will be needed to achieve it?

Gigabit broadband usually means full-fibre broadband but can also include other technology that can support gigabit speeds, for example, the most advanced cable broadband and future 5G networks.

In 2019, RootMetrics began providing independent information about the roll-out and performance of 5G networks in the UK, including their ability to provide gigabit speeds. The information we provide is crucial to helping businesses and consumers alike understand the availability of gigabit connectivity in their area, as well as its reliability and performance against other forms of connectivity.

Industry stakeholders are said to have welcomed the Government’s ambition but warned that the 2025 target can only be achieved with urgent policy reform to address barriers that are delaying roll-out. Barriers include not having access to properties to install infrastructure, new homes being built without full-fibre and skilled labour shortages.

The Government’s policy is that full-fibre or gigabit-broadband infrastructure will be mostly built by private investment. The Government has committed to provide funding for areas that are not viable for commercial investment. We believe that providing accurate, independent and scientifically rigorous testing of 5G connectivity will play an important role in encouraging competitive practices in the telecoms industry, driving consumer spending and furthering investment in telecoms infrastructure.

According to Ofcom, 10% of UK premises [6](around 3 million premises) had access to full-fibre as of September 2019. For comparison to other European countries, full-fibre was available to 38% of households in France and 8.5% of households in Germany in July 2018. European countries with the highest levels of full-fibre coverage to households were Latvia (88%), Spain (77%), Sweden (72%) and Portugal (70%).

To determine the reality of achieving the ambitious goals mentioned above, factors to take into account include understanding connectivity in terms of: different geographies, population distributions, existing infrastructure and the history of telecoms regulation

What are the challenges to the roll-out of 5G and gigabit-capable networks? To what extent do existing legislative, regulatory and spending plans address them?

Providing coverage across the entirety of the UK is a complicated task, given the differences in geography, population, and economic factors. It’s a delicate balancing act for operators, who must prioritise their optimisation efforts for the greatest impact.

It is important to note that if coverage has not been solved with 4G and LTE solutions, then 5G will not fix this in and of itself, at least not in the immediate future. As it stands, 5G networks ‘piggyback’ on existing 4G LTE networks to deliver their services, so must be considered together.

Although “not spots” do exist, some of these are in areas of little impact to consumers and we have also seen coverage continuing to expand across the board. It is important to look at phasing – 4G and LTE needs to be introduced first to fill the not spot, and then once this works, we can introduce 5G networks.

For businesses, a private 5G network can be initiated and means they do not need to wait for consumer cellular to support their use cases, but this may not solve general consumer needs.

It is vital to ensure that businesses and consumers have access to independent, reliable information about the performance of broadband and mobile connectivity. RootMetrics measured the performance of the UK’s first broadband networks in February 2020 and found significant disparities between the maximum and median speeds. While 5G in London reached nearly 0.4 gigabit speeds, its median was closer to 0.2 gigabit speeds (see Fig 2).

What does take-up of broadband and mobile services indicate about consumer and business attitudes to digital connectivity? What needs to be learnt from this for the roll-out of, and switchover to, gigabit-capable networks?

RootMetrics has been delivering accurate and reliable independent reporting on mobile connectivity in the UK for over a decade, including throughout the growth in take-up of 4G services.

Our reporting has consistently shown that when consumers and businesses have access to verifiable and reliable information connectivity performance, they can make competitive purchasing decisions. In turn, this has driven investment in network infrastructure and the uptake of new technologies across the UK.

In the home, we have seen from recent events that it is critical to modern resilience that people can work from home without impediment, often at the same time as their families are learning online using streaming services. Networks must have the capacity to do this, and consumers must be able to identify the right solution for their needs.

For businesses, gigabit connectivity opens a world of opportunities to best align operations with their communications network. However, it also creates a greater deal of complexity in buying decisions. Businesses will need to develop more sophisticated mechanisms for validating their telecom purchasing decisions, and operators will need to work on new proof points for educating and informing their customers about their unique selling proposition.

Different gigabit connectivity technologies will be better suited to different use cases – for example, the use of gigabit connectivity for autonomous vehicles may need to prioritise low latency connection as much as speeds. Reliable access to information about connectivity performance enables businesses to make these decisions.

Access to measurement and performance reporting will help businesses fully understand that gigabit-capable broadband will provide more reliable, resilient and future-proof connectivity, with fewer faults, more predictable consistent speeds and the ability to upgrade easily, therefore meeting the growing demands of future technology.

It is important to note that while 4G technology is widespread and nearly all consumers have access to 4G networks, the quality and reliability of those networks differs substantially. In the second half of 2019, the median speed of the UK’s 4G networks varied markedly – we found that EE delivered median speeds of 36.5Mbps while Vodafone delivered 19.8Mbps (see Fig 3). Performance disparities such as these in 5G networks will matter to businesses, particularly when relying on gigabit speeds to power new mission critical devices.

Businesses may need to shift their mindset rather than consider technical or structural considerations. After close to a decade of operating a business with current network capabilities as defining parameters as to what is possible with mobile, executives and employees alike are conditioned to accept certain limitations.

Team members may not have taken calls during their commute due to a low expectation of call quality on the train, or not have undertaken a more complex task like analysing live telematics data from fleet vehicles because of poor connectivity.

Like during the transition from 3G to 4G between 2010 and 2012, it took a considerable amount of time for businesses to fully leverage the network upgrade. 5G will be vastly more transformational. Those that can remove limiting thinking from their plans for technology investment will outperform rivals. The learning for government is to ensure the telecom industry experts are available to act as a guide.

For those companies and sectors that do fail to keep the pace, they should realise that 5G dramatically changes what consumers can do on their phones and at home. With 5G we are going to see 4K and 8K streaming video with zero lag, real-time game play everywhere, the self-aware smart home, large and seamless video conference calls and mobile augmented and virtual reality experiences.

5G presents a new opportunity for UK operators to deliver better performance and introduce new services that demand consistently fast speeds, widespread coverage and low latency. From a marketing standpoint, operators want to be the first on the market with these types of benefits and programs. From shopping centres to airports, operators are developing new partnerships to profit from 5G.

For mission critical communications, 5G will help individuals and communities realise the dream of autonomous vehicles, enable greater industry automation especially in manufacturing, enhanced digital healthcare and better connect our robots and drones.

Measuring this performance is critical to understanding whether it can be used for mission critical purposes. In February 2020, RootMetrics performed its second independent measurement of the UK’s 5G network performance. In Birmingham, where we found the highest speeds, we found that while the maximum speeds on offer reached up to 450 and 366Mbps for EE and Vodafone respectively, but the median speed was much lower at only 186 and 112Mbps respectively. Those differences in performance matter significantly, particularly as we seek to understand whether the UK has achieved gigabit broadband in a specific geography.

If communities and businesses are unable to access these technologies or do not see the value in onboarding these services, this could lead to residents avoiding coming to such areas. It would also restrain business investment in these sectors, and lead to greater urban and rural differences. Additionally, where sectors are reliant on the geographies that may see less investment without intervention, such as rural communities, there is the danger that they may become less productive than those in other economies.

If more rural areas are granted access to bandwidth, it enables more opportunities for the rest of the country to be connected at faster and more reliable speeds.

RootMetrics believes that all stakeholders in the UK must be able to rely on accurate information about the performance and delivery of 5G networks in order to support the successful roll-out of gigabit-capable infrastructure Consumers, local authorities and industry must all be able to rely on independent, accurate data that helps them understand the status of networks in their area and which technology is best for them, as well as to independently verify the information about the services they purchase. This will unlock competitive consumer behaviour, drive adoption and ensure that the telecoms sector works productively in the consumer interest.

While there are many means of assessing telecoms performance, Ofcom’s oversight and approval of consumer testing methods like those offered by RootMetrics would ensure the accuracy and independence of that information no matter the provider.

Fig 1 – Review of the Mobile Landscape 1H 2019

Fig 2 – 5G availability speeds in London

Fig 3 - UK-wide RootScores 2H 2019 across major operators