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Requirements
April 2018
2
Executive Summary
Creating smart 5G networks Requirements for each use case were
analysed, quantified where possible and
Network Slicing is set to be a prominent feature
categorised into performance, functional and
of 5G to allow connectivity and data processing
operational requirements.
tailored to specific customers’ requirements.
Mobile communications provided by smart Defining a common starting point
networks will enhance the efficiency and
This paper proposes the adoption of a “generic
productivity of business processes and will
slice template” that the industry can use as
open up opportunities for operators to address
universal description. A generic slice template
the Business to Business segment more
provides a universal description of a network
effectively.
slice type that can be used by infrastructure
The Business Opportunity size vendors, mobile network operators and slice
buyers. When populated with values for all or a
In the 5G era, different industry verticals are
subset of the attributes, the generic slice
seeking to leverage the power of technology to
descriptor can serve many purposes:
boost productivity across swathes of the
economy. Network Slicing builds on this Infrastructure vendors, can use the
expectation, and together with the promise of descriptor to define the features of their
Massive IoT and ultra-reliable/low latency products
services, will support the digital transformation The slice buyer can use the descriptor as a
and mobilisation of industry vertical customers. reference for SLA/contractual agreements
The GSMA estimates that in combination with with the operator
other enablers and capabilities, Network Operators can exchange slice descriptors
Slicing will permit operators to address a with their roaming partners facilitating the
revenue opportunity worth $300bn by 2025. support of service continuity when moving
between networks.
Understanding the customers’ needs The generic slice template will also serve as a
The possibility of tailoring mobile network baseline for the definition of a set of
properties to the needs of the business through standardised service/slice types.
the configuration of a large set of parameters This study has also been used to identify the
offers unsurpassed flexibility. However, with use cases that can be served by the same
such a diverse range of possible requirements network slice type as well as use cases that
from verticals, operators will need to manage are likely to require simultaneous support,
risks from excessive complexity in the service something referred to as a “network slice
offering and cumbersome management, bundle”. A network slice bundle describes the
leading to higher costs. family of network slice types required to serve
In this paper, the GSMA sets out to understand a group of use cases, for example a network
the service requirements expressed by slice bundle for a vehicle will include slices
business customers from different vertical supporting; a high-reliability telemetry service,
industries in several key sectors including a high bandwidth infotainment service, a low
energy, IoT, automotive, manufacturing and latency “vehicle to network to X” service, a
many more. super low latency vehicle to vehicle, etc.
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Acknowledgements
Special thanks to the following GSMA Network Slicing Taskforce members for their contribution
and review of this document:
AT&T Mobility MediaTek Inc.
BlackBerry Limited Metaswitch Networks
China Mobile Limited Nokia
China Telecommunications Corporation NTT DOCOMO Inc.
China Unicom Orange
Cisco Systems Qualcomm Incorporated
Deutsche Telekom AG Radiomóvil Dipsa
EE Limited S.A. de C.V.
Emirates Telecommunications Corporation Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
(ETISALAT)
SK Telecom Co. Ltd.
Ericsson
Sprint Corporation
Gemalto NV
Starhome Mach
OPPO
Syniverse Technologies Inc.
Hong Kong Telecommunications (HKT)
Telecom Italia SpA
Limited
Telefónica S.A.
Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Telenor Group
Hutchison 3G UK Limited
Telia Finland Oyj
Intel Corporation
United States Cellular Corporation
Jibe Mobile Inc.
Verizon Wireless
KDDI Corporation
Vodafone Roaming Services
KT Corporation
ZTE Corporation
Kuwait Telecom Company (K.S.C.)
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Contents
Executive Summary ................................ 3 Summary of requirements ............................. 30
Acknowledgements ................................ 4 Public Safety.......................................... 31
Contents .................................................. 5 Overview .......................................................... 31
Use Cases ........................................................ 31
Introduction ............................................. 7 Summary of Requirements ............................ 32
High-level view on Network Slicing .................7
Smart Cities ........................................... 32
Abbreviations .....................................................8
Overview .......................................................... 32
References ...................................................... 10
Use cases ........................................................ 32
Terminology .................................................... 11
Summary of requirements ............................. 33
Network Slicing: exploring the business
Industry recommendations and
case ........................................................ 13
reshaping the Network Slicing concept
Sizing the Network Slicing opportunity ........ 13
Network Slicing is part of the investment case 35
for 5G ............................................................... 14 Requirements analysis ................................... 35
Go-to-market Strategy .................................... 14 Operational requirements .............................. 39
Avoiding the commercial shortcomings of Generic Network Slicing template ....... 41
previous QoS type solutions ......................... 15 Cross-Standardisation Collaboration
Standardisation Landscape ................. 17 Recommendations ................................ 42
Vertical Industry Organisation ...................... 17 Coordination from System Architecture
Telecom Industry Organisation ..................... 17 Perspective ...................................................... 42
Standards Developing Organisation ............ 18 Coordination from Management Perspective
Telecom Industry Organisation ........... 21 .......................................................................... 42
AR/VR..................................................... 21 Coordination from Security Perspective ...... 43
Overview .......................................................... 21 Coordination between SDOs and Open
Use cases ........................................................ 21 Source .............................................................. 43
Automotive ............................................ 23 Other recommendations ....................... 44
Overview .......................................................... 23 Network Slicing Concept Evolution ..... 44
Use Cases ........................................................ 23 Operational isolation vs. network level
Summary of requirements ............................. 25 isolation ........................................................... 44
Energy.................................................... 25 Not a network slice for each vertical customer
Overview .......................................................... 25 .......................................................................... 45
Use Cases ........................................................ 25 Number of slices supported by the 5G system
Summary of requirement ............................... 27 .......................................................................... 45
Healthcare ............................................. 27 Network slice deployment ............................. 45
Overview .......................................................... 27 Regulatory aspects ............................... 48
Use cases ........................................................ 27 Net Neutrality................................................... 48
Summary of requirements ............................. 27 Quality of Service............................................ 48
Industry 4.0, Manufacturing ................. 28 Cross-Border Data Transfers ........................ 49
Illegal Content ................................................. 50
Overview .......................................................... 28
Summary .......................................................... 51
Use cases ........................................................ 28
Summary of requirements ............................. 29 Next steps .............................................. 53
Internet of Things for Low Power Wide Annex A Document Management ....... 54
Area Applications ................................. 29
Overview .......................................................... 29
Use cases ........................................................ 29
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1
Introduction
6
Introduction
5G networks, in combination with Network Chapter 2 explores the business cases for
Slicing, permit business customers to enjoy Network Slicing, which could potentially
connectivity and data processing tailored to change the way network operators do their
their specific business requirements. It is business and to enable new business
expected that providing tailored services to models.
business customers has significant commercial Chapter 3 gives a snapshot of the
potential. standardisation landscape with respect to
The main purpose of this document is to Network Slicing and covers vertical industry
provide a comprehensive overview about the organisations, telecom industry
service requirements expressed by business organisations as well standards developing
customers from different vertical industries - organisations.
consumers are purposefully not addressed. Chapter 4 summarises the results of the
These requirements have been collected study the GSMA conducted on the service
through discussions and interviews as well as requirements analysis for different vertical
analysis of available white papers. In addition, industries.
these requirements were analysed in detail and Chapter 5 represents the core part of this
industry recommendations are deviated document, which aims to analyse the
thereof. The paper also provides an overview service requirements and provides
of the standardisation landscape of Network recommendations towards the industry. It
Slicing, business model considerations and also discusses the idea of the generic slice
regulatory needs. Security, privacy and liability template.
have also been covered in this paper. Finally, Chapter 6 provides an overview about the
the generic slice template concept is briefly policy aspects around Network Slicing such
introduced which contains all the potential as net neutrality.
attributes a network slice could have. This Chapter 7 concludes the document and
gives us a baseline for all network slices provides details about the planned next
offered to customers by specifying the values steps.
that each parameter would take for a given
slice instance. High-level view on Network Slicing
This document is the successor of previous From a mobile operator’s point of view, a
documents [1], [2] which are written from the network slice is an independent end-to-end
customer perspective and which define what logical network that runs on a shared physical
Network Slicing is and what Network Slicing infrastructure, capable of providing an agreed
could offer to the customers. service quality. The technology enabling
The document is structured as follows: Network Slicing is transparent to business
customers for whom 5G networks, in
Chapter 1 introduces the paper and
combination with Network Slicing, allow
provides a brief summary of the Network
connectivity and data processing tailored to the
Slicing definition coming from the previous
specific business requirements. The
papers and the terminology used
customisable network capabilities include data
throughout the document.
speed, quality, latency, reliability, security, and
services. These capabilities are always
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provided based on a Service Level Agreement It is anticipated that mobile network operators
(SLA) between the mobile operator and the could deploy a single network slice type that
business customer. satisfies the needs of multiple verticals, as well
as multiple network slices of different types that
A network slice could span across multiple
are packaged as a single product targeted
parts of the network (e.g. access network, core
towards business customers (a business
network and transport network) and could be
bundle) who have multiple and diverse
deployed across multiple operators. A network
requirements (for example a vehicle may need
slice comprises of dedicated and/or shared
simultaneously a high bandwidth slice for
resources, e.g. in terms of processing power,
infotainment and an ultra-reliable slice for
storage, and bandwidth and has isolation from
telemetry, assisted driving).
the other network slices.
Abbreviations
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LPWA Low Power Wide Area QoS Quality of Service
LTE Long Term Evolution RTT Round-trip Time
MANO Management and Orchestration SDN Software Defined Networks
MBB Mobile Broadband SDO Standards Developing
MCPTT Mission Critical Push to Talk Organisation
9
References
Ref Title
[1] Smart 5G networks: enabled by Network Slicing and tailored to customers’ needs
[2] An Introduction to 5G Network Slicing
[3] http://5gaa.org/
[4] https://www.zvei.org/en/
[5] http://www.iiconsortium.org/
[6] https://www.tmforum.org/
[7] https://www.broadband-forum.org/
[8] http://www.etsi.org/technologies-clusters/technologies/nfv
[9] https://portal.etsi.org/tb.aspx?tbid=862&SubTB=862
[10] 5GPPP Project 5GCAR, “Deliverable D2.1: 5GCAR Scenarios, Use Cases, Requirements
and KPIs”.
[11] 5G-PPP White Paper on Automotive Vertical Sector, “5G Automotive Vision”, Oct. 2015
[12] 3GPP TR 22.886 V15.1.0, “Study on enhancement of 3GPP Support for 5G V2X Services”
[13] 3GPP TS 22.186 V15.2.0, “Enhancement of 3GPP support for V2X scenarios”
[14] 3GPP TS 22.185 V14.3.0, “Service requirements for V2X services”
[15] 5GPPP White paper, “5G and Energy”, Sep 2015
[16] 3GPP TS 22.261 V16.1.0, “Service requirements for the 5G system”
[17] Perspectives on Vertical Industries and Implications for 5G”, 06/2016.
https://www.ngmn.org/fileadmin/user_upload/160610_NGMN_Perspectives_on_Vertical_In
dustries_and_Implications_for_5G_v1_0.pdf
[18] 3GPP TS 22.804, “Study on Communication for Automation in Vertical Domains”
[19] What is the Internet of Things
https://www.gsma.com/iot/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/What-is-the-Internet-of-Things.pdf
[20] 3GPP Low Power Wide Area Technologies
https://www.gsma.com/iot/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/3GPP-Low-Power-Wide-Area-
Technologies-GSMA-White-Paper.pdf
[21] ETSI Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC)
http://www.etsi.org/technologies-clusters/technologies/multi-access-edge-computing
[22] ONAP https://www.onap.org/
[23] OSM: https://osm.etsi.org/
[24] ETSI ISG “MEC support for network slicing
https://portal.etsi.org/webapp/WorkProgram/Report_WorkItem.asp?WKI_ID=53580
[25] Zero-touch Network and Service Management – Introductory White Paper, December 7,
2017
https://portal.etsi.org/TBSiteMap/ZSM/OperatorWhitePaper
[26] NGMN Alliance, “5G End-to-End Architecture Framework”, 10/2017.
[27] Huawei iLab, “Cloud VR–oriented Bearer Network White Paper”, 2017.11.02
10
[28] 3GPP TS 33.501, 0.7.0, “Security architecture and procedures for 5G System”
[29] http://www.ieee802.org/1/pages/802.1as.html
[30] https://standards.ieee.org/findstds/standard/1588-2008.html
[31] 5G Network Slicing for Vertical Industries
https://gsacom.com/paper/5g-network-slicing-vertical-industries/
[32] China Telecom, China’s State Grid, and Huawei, “5G Network Slicing Enabling the Smart
Grid”, January 22, 2018
11
2
Network Slicing:
exploring the business
case
12
Network Slicing: exploring the business case
Sizing the Network Slicing opportunity services, will support the transformation of
vertical industries.
Network Slicing is integral to unlocking the
enterprise opportunity ($300bn by 2025) for
To unlock this opportunity, Network Slicing
the 5G era. Already, the industry expects the
will enable operators to create pre-defined,
enterprise segment to be the most important
differing levels of services to different
source of incremental revenue opportunity in
enterprise verticals, enabling them to
the 5G (Figure 1). Network Slicing is one of
customise their own operations.
the 5G era tools and enablers that will
support operators to unlock the enterprise However, the opportunity could become even
Figure 1: New incremental revenue opportunities in 5G to come from the enterprise segment
Figure 2: The role of collaboration in the investment case for Network Slicing
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Network Slicing is part of the investment Network Slicing marginal to the broader
case for 5G investment case for 5G. This is an important
consideration because building a new
There are three considerations about the
investment case to retrofit an already
investment case for Network Slicing,
deployed network is difficult and slow. That is
especially given the potential complexity and
the lesson learned from the past where
cost of the required automation.
VoLTE launches were decoupled from LTE
launches (compared to 2G/3G voice
Firstly, ongoing industry activities to services).
standardise Network Slicing should gear
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3
Standardisation
landscape
16
Standardisation Landscape
Network Slicing is a concept for running Vertical Industry Organisation
multiple logical customised networks on a Network Slicing aims to support various
shared common infrastructure complying with vertical industries in the 5G era, hence the
agreed Service Level Agreements (SLAs) for direct requirements from vertical industries
different vertical industry customers (or are essential for Network Slicing designs. 5G-
tenants) and requested functionalities. To awareness has been developed among
achieve this goal, Network Slicing needs to be different vertical industries. For instance, 5G
designed from an End-to-End (E2E) Automotive Association (5GAA), created in
perspective, spanning over different technical September 2016, aims at a global, cross-
domains (e.g., access network, core network, industry Organisation of companies from the
transport network and network management automotive, technology, and
system) as well as administrative domains telecommunications industries (ICT), working
(e.g., pertaining to different mobile network together to develop end-to-end solutions for
operators). Figure 5 illustrates a snapshot of future mobility and transportation services [3].
various groups and organisations relevant to In Nov 2017, the first Network Slicing
Network Slicing development. workstream was established in 5GAA WG5 to
understand the business aspects of Network
Even though many organisations are tackling Slicing in automotive industry. Manufacturing
Network Slicing issues as discussed above, industry organisations like Zentralverband
they also notice that Network Slicing issues Elektrotechnik und Elektronikindustrie (ZVEI)
cannot be resolved in a single entity. [4] and Industrial Internet Consortium (IIC) [5]
Therefore, they should be liaised between also started to engage with 5G for next
them. The relationship among different generation smart manufacturing solutions.
industry platforms and SDOs is shown in Telecom Industry Organisation
Figure 6.
Telecom Industry Organisations like the
In the following sections more details about GSMA and NGMN (Next Generation Mobile
the vertical industry and telecom industry Networks) describe the business drivers,
organisations as well as the standards concepts, and high-level requirements of E2E
developing organisations will be provided. Network Slicing from the operator’s point of
view. The GSMA has initiated the Network
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Slicing Taskforce (NEST) project to Standards Developing Organisation
harmonise slicing definition, identify slice
Various technologies and innovations from
types with distinct characteristics and
different technical domains have substantially
consolidate parameter and functionality
contributed to the Network Slicing progress in
requirements. The NEST aims at generating
different Standards Developing Organisations
a Permanent Reference Document (PRD) to
(SDO). Currently, technical specifications of
guide future Network Slicing standards.
those domains are defined in corresponding
The NGMN Alliance is developing, SDOs, namely, Radio Access Network (RAN)
consolidating and communicating and Core Network (CN) by 3GPP, Transport
requirements to ensure that customer needs Network (TN) by BBF and IETF, etc. ITU-
and expectations on mobile services are T(GSTR-TN5G), IEEE(NGFI 1914), MEF and
fulfilled. The Alliance actively drives global other SDOs are working on this topic as well.
alignment and convergence of technology The major SDOs will be introduced in the
standards and industry initiatives with the following sections.
objective to avoid fragmentation and to
guarantee industry scale. 3GPP
3GPP could be considered as the
TM Forum ZOOM project [6] has started a forefront ambassador for Network Slicing.
workstream to analyse Network Slicing There are many Working Groups in 3GPP
business models and business scenarios of related with Network Slicing. In 3GPP
high interest to service providers, vertical SA1, Network Slicing related use cases
industries, and other potential Network and requirements are defined. In 3GPP
Slicing consumers. A number of user stories RAN1/2/3, the RAN slicing-awareness
have been generated, and respective features are discussed. In 3GPP SA2, the
requirements have been derived and mapped fundamental system architecture choice to
to TM Forum Assets. support Network Slicing is specified. For
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instance, the fundamental network mechanism may be standardised to meet
functions and procedures to support slice such requirement.
selection/access, session management
Another work in IETF is primary to define the
within network slices, as well as the
interface between the 3GPP slicing
terminal behaviour, e.g. a UE could
management system and TN slicing
support maximum eight slices in parallel,
management system. For the IP transport
and a common core network function is
network, this interface is the northbound
defined, i.e. AMF, for one UE to be
interface of TN slicing management system
capable to use all slices.
defined in BBF.
The 3GPP SA5 Working Group are
responsible for completing the creation ETSI
and management of slices in the 3GPP ETSI ISG NFV
realm and for driving the coordinating with The ETSI NFV ISG (Network Function
other relevant SDOs to generate complete Virtualisation) [8] is responsible for
E2E network slices. SA3 Working Group providing technical solutions for
[28] are responsible for security resources such as computing and
capabilities of E2E Network Slicing that storage for Network Slicing. They
require triggering and coordination with consider NFV is a key enabler for the
ETSI ISG NFV on isolation of Network 5G infrastructure. However, further
Slices. work is still required to understand
how NFV technology supports
BBF
Network Slicing, analyses the impacts
BBF’s [7] main scope in Network Slicing is
to the current NFV architecture and
to clarify the requirements for 5G bearer
standardises the NFV slicing resource
networks and defines the related TN
layer. Including security and reliability-
slicing management architecture. The
related features such as virtualisation
BBF should establish formal cooperation
level security isolation scheme,
with 3GPP to facilitate the transmission
function orchestration of virtual border
requirements from 3GPP and coordinate
gateway (such as firewall),
the interface requirements between the
deployment and configuration
3GPP slicing management system and
strategy.
Bearer slicing management system,
including corresponding slicing creation ETSI ISG ZSM
and management processes. The In Dec 2017, ETSI created the Zero
technical definition for a specific interface touch network and Service
is not within the scope of the BBF Management Industry Specification
standardisation, but they can recommend Group (ZSM ISG) [9]. This initiative
the potential options. aims to resolve the 5G E2E Network
Slicing management issue. Their
IETF vision is to enable full automation in
To support Network Slicing, the IP router terms of delivery, deployment,
should be enhanced, which will extend configuration, assurance, and
existing protocols, such as Segment optimisation of network services.
Routing (SR) and L3VPN. Furthermore,
potentially DetNet is a candidate
technology for transporting traffic of
URLLC slice type. Extension or new
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4
Vertical Requirements
20
Telecom Industry Organisation
This chapter briefly summarises different the status of the different verticals is different
vertical industries, their most important use while some have very concrete ideas about
cases and their most important service use cases and requirements with concrete
requirements. The intention is not to provide values associated to them some have vague
very detailed information, but instead give an ideas with initial indications. More
idea about the biggest challenges for each discussions and analysis are required in the
vertical industry. References to more detailed future to complement the list of verticals as
information are provided where available. well as details about the requirements and
use cases.
It should be noted that the list of verticals is
not complete but can be considered as a
snapshot of the current status. In addition,
AR/VR
It should be noted that AR/VR is not a vertical Use cases
industry in itself. Instead AR/VR use cases
can be found in almost all of the vertical Strong-Interactive VR: Audio-visual
industries. However, these use cases are so interaction
important that they are discussed in a Audio-visual interaction is characterised by a
separate section. human being interacting with the environment
or people, or controlling an UE, and relying
Overview on audio-visual feedback. In order to achieve
Augmented Reality (AR) is a technique where the VR environments with low motion-to-
the real world view is augmented, or assisted, photon requirements, the 5G network slice
by a computer generated views, this can be should have the capability of motion-to-
in single or multi-sensory modes including, photon latency in the range of 7-15ms while
auditory, visual, and haptic. maintaining the 250Mbps user data rate and
motion-to-sound delay less than 20ms.
Virtual Reality (VR) is the technology to
construct a virtual environment, which may During voice conversions, there exists some
be based on the real environment within interactive tasks, 5G Network Slicing is
which people could have real-time required to have the capability to support
interaction. There are a number of key 100ms one-way mouth-to-ear low-delay
technologies used together to enable VR, i.e. speech coding for interactive conversational
360 degree panorama video, Freeview-point, services.
computer graphics, light field, etc. Many Furthermore, audio components and video
applications are derived from VR, for components are usually handled separately,
instance, VR gaming, VR broadcasting, VR so in order to avoid having a negative impact
simulated environment for education, on the user experience, the communication
healthcare, military training, etc. Moreover, system will also have to cater for the VR
the mutuality of the Cloud capability (e.g. audio-video synchronisation. The audio-video
rendering in cloud, edge computing) as well synchronisation thresholds is 5-125ms for
as pervasive network infrastructure audio delayed and 5-45ms for audio
deployment will bring VR applications to a advanced.
new dimension.
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Strong-Interactive VR: Low-delay speech and direct them to complete tasks. Enabling a
and video coding deeper level of assistance and guidance to
Current speech codecs have an inherent be conveyed.
coding delay of 20-40ms. In a 4G network,
Accelerated Learning: AR training packages
such coding delay is not a problem during a
can facilitate vastly more effective training.
phone call because even a 400ms one-way
Supervisors are able to mentor and assess
delay between speakers does not seriously
capability, resulting in higher-quality work
impair an interactive discussion. However,
with less mistakes.
when the speech voice is used in a highly
interactive environment, e.g., a multiplayer Summary of requirements
game or a virtual reality meeting, the In order to understand VR applications’
requirements on the speech coding delay requirements for Network Slicing, VR
become tougher to meet, and current coding applications could be classified into two
delays are too high. To support interactivity, categories according to how an end user
the one-way delay for speech should be interacts with the virtual environment: weak-
10ms (or lower). These scenarios have a interactive VR (wi-VR) and strong-interactive
critical requirement on transfer bandwidth VR (si-VR). According to the technology
and delay to guarantee good user experience maturity, VR use cases may experience three
compared to current video service. different stages:
Entry-Level VR Advanced VR Ultimate VR
(FOV,8K 2D/3D) (FOV,12K 3D) (FOV,24K 3D)
Data rate 40Mbps(2D) 340Mbps FOV:2.34Gbps
63Mbps(3D)
Typical RTT 30ms(2D) 20ms 10ms
20ms(3D)
Packet loss 2.40E-5 1.00E-6 1.00E-6
Automotive
Overview However, for a successful deployment of
CV2X, 5G operators need to have a full
Cellular vehicle-to-everything (CV2X) is
understanding of the use cases and
considered as one of the most prominent use
requirements of the automotive industry.
cases for 5G, and the automotive industry
has been one of the first verticals that Use Cases
engaged with the communications technology
5G CV2X use cases have been well studied
industry. CV2X aims to enable
by many research programs (e.g. 5GPPP
communication amongst vehicles (referred to
[10][11]), standardisation (e.g. 3GPP [12][13])
Vehicle to Vehicle or V2V) as well as
and industry oraganisations (e.g. 5GAA [3]).
communication between vehicles and an
A number of representative use case
infrastructure. Not only CV2X will create new
families/classes are presented in the
business opportunities for OEMs, e.g.
following sub-sections.
providing in-car infotainment service, but will
also increases road safety. To support Infotainment
performance critical type of services (e.g. This type of use cases requires direct
autonomous/semi-autonomous/assisted data exchange between vehicle and
driving), CV2X communication also includes application servers via mobile systems.
other connected-vehicle technology, e.g. in- Such services normally focus on providing
car sensors, cameras and radar systems. a more pleasant driving experience both
Providing support for V2X services using for driver and passengers so they are not
operator’s 5G public network, not only will safety-critical and can be delivered using
significantly reduce deployment cost mobile broadband (MBB) connectivity.
compared to running V2X services on a Examples include: music, movies, live TV
dedicated network, but will also offer a better streaming, audio/video conference
coverage. Moreover, CV2X can benefit from streaming (office-in-car), online gaming,
support of critical performance (e.g. ultra- web browsing.
reliable and low latency communication) and
Telematics
customised network services (e.g. network This type of use case also requires direct
function could be tailored according to data exchange between vehicle and
customers’ requirements) that are included application servers via a mobile system,
by design in 5G.
23
which are normally provided by sensor or information captured by the
automotive manufacturer (or their vehicles like traffic information. Such
authorised third-party service provider). information could be used for
Being different from the above category, it collective perception of environment to
provides services to assist the driving avoid potential dangers. One typical
experience. Example use cases are use case is “See-Through”, which
navigation provision, remote health refers to camera and/or radar data
monitoring of the vehicle, precise position sharing to improve/extend driver’s
provisioning, parking slot discovery, visibility. For instance, by receiving a
automated parking, etc. An automotive video stream captured by the front
manufacturer could also use the truck can help the driver behind to
connectivity to schedule a control module make an overtaking decision.
firmware and software update over mobile Information sharing is also one of the
system for selected range/type of essential factors to enable
vehicles. autonomous driving services
mentioned below.
Road Safety and Efficiency
Advanced Driving Service
Basic Safety Services Advanced driving services enable
Basic safety services support the semi-automated or fully automated
driver with additional information to driving.
improve road safety and efficiency.
Cooperative driving
Road Warning Information (on-vehicle sensor data
These services provide information to and driving actions like braking and
the driver about imminent dangers accelerating) can be exchanged
such as red light violation, hazard among vehicles for cooperative
warning, forward collision warning, collision avoidance. Another example
intersection collision warning, traffic use case is cooperative lane merging,
jam warning, etc. Such information where vehicles exchange information
could help the drivers to take remedial on their intended trajectories and
actions (e.g. lane changing, perform automated lane changing
deceleration). Being different from the manoeuvres to avoid collisions and to
driving experience assistance improve traffic flow.
mentioned in Telematics, these use
cases normally are triggered by a Platooning
specific event (e.g. based on real time This use case class describes
road situation detection) and the operating a group of vehicles in a
actions are taken by driver, hence it is closely linked manner so that the
not strictly delay-sensitive but it is vehicles move like a train with virtual
preferred to be delivered as fast as strings attached between vehicles. To
possible. keep the vehicles as close as possible
with safety assurance, the vehicles
Information (Sensor data) Sharing need to share status information (such
Perception of surrounding as speed, heading) as well as their
environment for driving condition driving intentions (such as braking,
analysis is a very crucial aspect to acceleration). By doing this, the overall
improve driving safety. Real-time fuel consumption could be lowered
information could be exchanged
among vehicles, e.g. on-vehicle
24
down and the amount of required gathering relevant use cases and
drivers can also be reduced. requirements working directly with automotive
industry partners. The scale of the challenge
Tele-operation
should not be underestimated: to support
This use case class describes the
advanced driving services, the mobile system
scenarios where a driver could directly
should provide ultra-high reliable and low
control an autonomous-capable
latency communication between the vehicles
vehicle from a remote location such as
and the network, as well as between vehicles
a control centre in certain periods of
and vehicles, exceptional mobility
time. The remote driver receives a
management performance and seamless
video stream taken from the cameras
service continuity even when moving at high
on the vehicle. The real-time video
speed. Furthermore, the mobile system
provides elaborate perception of the
should provide “predictive QoS”, that is
environment to the driver so that the
inform the vehicle of changes in the quality of
diver can operate the vehicle as if
the connectivity going to be provided in the
he/she is personally inside the vehicle.
future so that the vehicle could decide to
Advanced video technology (e.g. VR)
switch from autonomous driving mode to
could further improve the experience
manual driving mode. Examples of factors
of a remote driver.
that the network may use to predict future
Summary of requirements quality of service include weather conditions,
Automotive use cases have huge business road situation, network availability at the
potential, however, they also impose position where the vehicle is travelling etc.
stringent performance requirements for the 5G may have geographic coverage
mobile system. Support of the CV2X limitations (especially at the initial deployment
requirements has been introduced for LTE in stage). It is therefore useful for 5GAA and
3GPP Release 14 [14], while with regards to other relevant industry associations to specify
5G, the plan is to develop technical solutions vehicle (or the device) behaviour in case the
as part of Release 16 is expected to be network performance is not going to meet the
completed at the end of 2019. In parallel to minimum requirements.
the 3GPP activity, 5GAA is working on
Energy
Overview massive volume of MTC type applications of
the emerging smart metering.
The energy vertical has some very specific
requirements on the supporting Use Cases
communication solutions that go beyond what
Energy use cases have been investigated for
current LTE can provide. The business
instance by 5GPPP[15] and 3GPP[16], as
potential of introducing 5G Network Slicing in
well as by vertical customers themselves [32]
the energy domain is exceptionally high, as it
. Some typical use cases are briefly
is expected to provide the necessary support
explained in the following.
not only to the critical machine type
communication (MTC) applications of energy Smart grid
grid protection and control, but also to the Due to the urgent demands of smart grids,
an efficient and reliable communication
25
network solution is expected. The exchange of signalling between each
backbone network domain is a typical other. 5G Network Slicing could provide
network in which terminals are in the high an economical and efficient way to
and extra high voltage area. The terminals support the communication needs.
of a backhaul network are in the medium
voltage area. As for the access network, Smart meters and aggregator gateways
the end points are in the low voltage area. Future power terminals are expected to
A large amount of growing demand supply frequent measurements. This
happens in the medium-voltage and low- evolution leads to the requirement on
voltage domains, which are secondary future networks to carry short data
Healthcare
Overview Remote healthcare
The health & wellness industry is about to Live bidirectional video for more efficient
change dramatically thanks to the availability consultation, diagnosis, treatment,
and usage of electronic processes and monitoring as well as for assisted surgery.
communication technology. This change will
Remote surgery
be driven by demographical changes and the
In this use case medical devices are
resulting growing costs as well as the
controlled remotely allowing off site
growing demand for flexible and individual
surgeons to operate on a patient. This is
treatment.
probably the use case with the most
Use cases demanding requirements in terms of
The health & wellness use cases are very latency, reliability and guaranteed quality
diverse with many sub-use cases. The of service. It is unlikely that the early
following list aims to briefly summarise the deployments of 5G networks will have
most important ones. More details to some of sufficient capabilities to support the
these use cases can be found in [17]: functionality required by remote surgery.
Summary of requirements
Hospitals
Deals with processes in and around a The requirements for the health & wellness
hospital. The most prominent examples industry need to be further analysed. With the
are medical device tracking, emergency exception of remote surgery, it seems
communication, (real-time) data reasonable to assume that the requirements
availability and exchange and data on the network are not very stringent,
transfer. therefore it should be possible to support
most of the use cases when the 5G network
Rehabs and care homes is deployed.
Processes in and around rehabs and care
Availability is most important requirement for
homes. Here, the most important use
these use cases, followed by latency and
case is assisted living.
then throughput.
Health and wellness monitoring From a functional point of view, many of the
Tracking health-relevant indicators using mentioned use cases are likely to require
various types of sensors. This data can be precise positioning solutions that also work
collected at a central office where it can when the device is indoor, strong security
be analysed by automated data analytics and both cloud and edge computing
processes as well as human experts. capabilities.
27
Industry 4.0, Manufacturing
Overview different industrial controllers. For higher
flexibility it is expected that this
The “Fourth Industrial Revolution” or Industry
communication is wireless. Depending on
4.0 is set to fundamentally change the
the concrete scenarios, these C2C
manufacturing industry. The main drivers are
systems typically have very challenging
improvements in terms of flexibility,
requirements on the communication
versatility, resource efficiency, cost efficiency,
service.
worker support, and quality of industrial
production and logistics. Motion control
To achieve the required flexibility, wireless Motion control controls moving and/or
connectivity (as a substitute for the wire- rotating parts of machines. Wireless
bound connectivity available in today’s communication is well suited for the
factories) is essential. Generally speaking, control of components, which move
Industry 4.0 use cases have very demanding and/or rotate.
requirements, e.g. in terms of latency,
Mobile robots and mobile platforms
synchronicity and availability.
Mobile robots and mobile platforms
Use cases perform activities like assistance in work
In [18] the Industry 4.0 use cases have been steps and transport of goods, materials
grouped into five different application areas. and other objects and can have a large
These are: Factory automation, Process mobility within the industrial environment.
automation, Human-machine interfaces
Mobile Control Panels with Safety
(HMIs) & production IT, Logistics and
Functions
warehousing and Monitoring and
Mobile control panels with safety functions
maintenance.
are devices for the interaction between
These application areas are composed of a people and production machinery as well
set of basic use cases. These use cases are as for the interaction with moving devices,
briefly summarised below: e.g. for configuring, monitoring,
debugging, controlling and maintaining
Augmented reality machines, robots, cranes or complete
Augmented reality optimally supports production lines. Optionally these panels
shop floor workers, for instance, in tasks are equipped with an emergency stop
like: monitoring of processes and button.
production flows, step-by-step instructions
for specific tasks (e.g. in manual Closed-loop control
assembly workplaces), ad-hoc support Closed-loop control in which several
from a remote expert (e.g. maintenance or sensors are installed in a plant and each
service tasks). It is expected that the AR sensor performs continuous
devices have minimum capabilities and measurements. The measurement data is
that complex functions are executed at transported to a controller, which takes a
the edge cloud. decision to set actuators.
30
Public Safety
Overview Group call capabilities
Several countries are considering updating Broadcast call capabilities
their existing PPDR networks to take Pre-emption and prioritisation for
advantage of the advancements in mobile specific services, like Emergency Call
technology and capabilities such as high Symmetric utilisation
speed data transfer that are underdeveloped End-to-End encryption; 256 bit or
in the current mainstream systems in use higher
such as TETRA and P25. Adopting the new Interface to narrowband standards,
technology will also unlock economies of (e.g. TETRA)
scale and the introduction of innovative Mission Critical Data
solutions as they become available for Data communications to allow the
commercial services. exchange of text messages, files and
images between public safety officers
Countries such as the United States, South
can greately enhance the efficiency of
Korea and the UK are spearheading the
their operations when compared to
introduction of LTE-based PPDR networks
using only voice media. The following
and the trend seems to point to a deployment
requirements are expected to be met:
of such networks as an overlay of existing
commercial networks. A public safety network Real-time capability with very low
is therefore conceptually consistent with a delay and jitter, due to automatic
network slice and due to the performance, analysis and overlaying during
availability, isolation properties it is natural to simultaneous usage of different
expect that it will be in a future deployed in a sources
network slice. High bandwidth in one network cell; up
to 5 Gbit/s
Use Cases Pre-emption and prioritisation for
The following use cases have been identified specific services
for public safety enabled mobile networks: Symmetric utilisation
End-to-End encryption; 256 bit or
Mission Critical Push-To-Talk higher
As for the legacy TETRA and P25 Interface to narrowband standards,
networks, users of public safety networks like TETRA
need to be able to communicate in groups
characterised often by strict hierarchy and Mission Critical Video
facilitated by powerful floor control Real-time capability with very low delay
mechanism. The enablement of MCPTT is and jitter, due to automatic analysis and
underpinned by the following overlaying during simultaneous usage of
requirements: different sources
Very low end-to-end talk setup time; High bandwidth in one network cell; up
below 100ms to 5 Gbit/s for video signals with a
Very high number of users in one cell; minimum resolution of 1080p60
ca. 6000 Pre-emption and prioritisation for
High quality voice, incl. noise specific services
cancellation
31
Asymmetric utilisation; higher uplink End-to-End encryption; 256 bit or
capacity than downlink higher
End-to-End encryption 256 bit or Interface to narrowband standards,
higher like TETRA
Interface to narrowband standards, Summary of Requirements
like TETRA Many commonalities emerge from the
Massive Mission Critical IoT analysis of the requirements of the public
Access to the ever-growing number of IoT safety use cases. Some of the requirements,
devices such as security cameras, such as backwards compatibility towards
drones, smoke detectors, health monitors legacy PPDR communication systems, can
will provide unvalued support to the probably be realised at application level via
operations of public safety agencies, it is some interworking function. Security, which
therefore required that a network can stands out as a main requirement for public
support communication with these safety use cases, could be provided at
devices in a secure and reliable manner. application level (e.g. end to end encryption),
The following requirements apply to IoT however it seems a better choice to utilise the
devices used for mission critical capability of implementing different security
operations: models as well as isolation properties that
Network Slicing allows to fulfil the security
Real-time capability with very low requirement of the public safety use cases.
delay and jitter, due to automatic
analysis and overlaying during The network slice will also need to be
designed to provide capabilities for pre-
simultaneous usage of different
sources emption and prioritisation of mission critical
traffic, radio bearers with high bandwidth for
Pre-emption and prioritisation for
mission critical data or with low delay and
specific services;
jitter for MCPTT and Mission Critical Video.
Asymmetric utilisation
Smart Cities
Overview addressed in this paper as part of other by
other vertical industries are briefly explained.
The concept of smart cities envisages the
deployment, management, usage and Use cases
maintenance of city’s assets using ICT. The
goal is to improve efficiency, sustainability Intelligent lighting
and to address the requirements coming from Intelligent lighting refers to lighting
changing demographics. Thereby, areas like networks in which, for instance, lights can
public transport, infrastructure, utilities, public be turned on in a formation on-demand. In
safety, etc. are addressed. addition, maintenance gains can be
improved through regular status reports.
The smart cities use cases are very diverse However, the gains are expected to be
and many of them have already been relatively low. Therefore, the bundling with
addressed within other vertical industries other services is needed, e.g. for
(e.g. waste management, smart parking, monitoring, reporting, and coordination
smart bike sharing, energy grid, etc.). The tasks as well potential sites for small cells
following section focuses on the most or roadside units (for V2X services).
important use cases that are not already
32
Public safety Summary of requirements
Public safety networks open new
The requirements for the smart cities industry
opportunities to detect and fight crime.
have not yet been analysed in detail. For
Examples could be secure and reliable
most of the use cases and requirements no
communication networks for security
concrete values but indications are available.
service and law enforcement as well as
However, it turns out, that most of the use
the real-time analysis of data coming from
cases are not very demanding e.g. compared
different sources like cameras, sensors,
to other industries.
etc.
Regarding the performance requirements, a
Emergency service management very high density of devices as well as the
Emergency service management is about high availability/coverage and high data rate
efficient and target-oriented are the most important requirements.
communication in disaster (natural as well
From the functional requirements energy
as man-made) scenarios. Herby,
efficient operations, especially for sensors
warnings to the people as well as
and security are most important.
communication to non-human entities
(e.g. shutting down elevators, etc.) is
envisioned.
33
5
Industry
Recommendations and
Reshaping the Network
Slicing Concept
34
Industry recommendations and reshaping the Network
Slicing concept
This chapter aims to conclude the findings Enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB)
from the service requirements analysis Ultra-reliable low latency
discussed in section 4. Rather than providing communications (URLLC)
details about the collected service Massive machine type
requirements, this chapter provides communications (mMTC)
conclusions and recommendations derived eMBB in contrast to MBB provides
thereof. Recommendations towards cross- improved data rates, capacity and
standardisation collaboration are expressed coverage. URLLC refers to critical types
and the concept of the generic networking of communication supporting very low
slicing template is briefly introduced. In latency, high reliability as well as small to
addition the concept of Network Slicing is medium data rates. mMTC supports the
reshaped for the purpose of clarifying some IoT use cases with scenarios in which a
common misunderstandings. very large number of (millions to billions)
Requirements analysis of small devices have to be connected
efficiently, e.g. in an energy efficient way.
Use case clustering
The use cases discussed in this
This section provides a descriptive
document can be also grouped into these
comparison outlining similarities and
three main groups. An overview for non-
differences in use case requirements. In
IoT use cases is provided in Figure 7 in
the future this clustering can be extended
which use cases are roughly categorised
allowing identification of required service
based on their throughput, latency and
slice types and their characteristics.
In the literature future use cases are
normally clustered based on their
performance requirements into:
35
availability requirements1. However, the automotive industry or motion-
based on the performance requirements control and control-to-control use
at least two additional service types can cases from the Industry 4.0 vertical.
be identified: For the latter ones, values of smaller
than 1 microsecond are required.
eMBBLLC use cases have high
requirements on latency and Today these requirements are met by
bandwidth at the same time. the deploying cable
Availability requirements are in most of connections/networks as like industrial
the cases a bit more relaxed Ethernet systems or fieldbuses. These
compared with URLLC use cases. networks are normally closed solutions
Examples are augmented reality and by a single vendor in which all the
virtual reality use cases. equipment is perfectly aligned. Based
mMTC/URLLC use cases comprise on standards like IEEE 802.1 AS [29]
sensors sending data which needs to or IEEE 1588 [30] very high
be delivered with a very low latency synchronicity can be achieved in the
and a high reliability. One example is networks.
the motion control use case of Industry When thinking about 5G networks it is
4.0. the expectation of the vertical
Based on the previous findings one of the
X X X
….. …..
time
1
It should be noted that the clustering should be seen as case was assumed and where no values were available and
indicative. Where available concrete values have been educated guess was done.
considered in case ranges of values were available the worth
36
inter packet delay), control-to-control indicated by variant vertical industry use
(e.g. 4ms inter packet delay), etc. cases.
The network slice must be able to Security
deliver this type of cyclic traffic with Security is a general concern for all
minimum impact on the inter-packet industries, because of the damage
delay. Especially in the RAN, this that security leaks may cause.
38
deprioritised and delivered when traffic services and capabilities provided by 3GPP
is low such as during off-peak hours. network interfaces, etc.
Predictive QoS However, these APIs might not be enough for
Predictive QoS is an important feature some of the future use cases or future
allowing operators to inform the customers. To better support vertical
service in advance about a quality industries to deliver their services to their own
drop. Predictive QoS can be applied to end users via slicing method, under specific
various KPIs, e.g. coverage, regulatory regimes it may be possible to open
throughput, latency, etc. up certain operational capabilities of the
mobile system towards the vertical industries.
For instance, when a vehicle is moving
Operators could provide a set of APIs to
along a path under autonomous
expose such capabilities towards vertical
driving mode, the mobile system may
customers. This does not only provide
foresee performance drop (e.g. due to
convenience for verticals to manage their
channel condition or system
own service, but also enrich the Network
congestion situation). In this case, the
Slicing business model for telco industry.
mobile system could as a precaution
take corrective actions e.g. resource According to the business incentive as well
rescheduling (scaling up/out), or as service operation methods, vertical
simply inform the vehicle about the customers have very different perspectives in
potential performance drop. Such terms of required operational capabilities.
information could be evaluated by the
vehicle itself in order to make decision Monitoring capability
to switch from autonomous driving Monitoring capability is one of the
mode to manual driving mode to avoid fundamental operational requirements, for
potential danger. The higher accuracy instance monitoring traffic characteristic
a system’s predictive QoS provisioning and performance (e.g., data rate, packet
capability is, the higher possibility for drop, and latency), end user’s
the system to support industry use geographical distribution, etc. Moreover,
cases with critical system performance monitoring itself also contains many
requirements. subcategory according to the add-on
requirements, for instance, monitoring
To find out how predictive QoS works granularity (e.g. per second, per hour,
under realistic conditions and which etc.), per session/user/slice instance
accuracies can be achieved more based monitoring, etc.
analysis and field trials are required.
Limited control capability
Operational requirements
Vertical customers could use APIs
In previous generation mobile systems, provided by the operators to control
operator’s infrastructure as well as the network service. For instance, instead of
provided network services have always be simply using the network service, vertical
presented as a black box for the OTT or customers could decide where to locate
enterprise customers. Only few APIs are the network functions. Moreover, verticals
provided by the network to the service could also decide how to integrate their
providers including making and receiving own applications with the other network
voice calls, sending SMS/MMS, the Service functions to run together within the
Capability Exposure Function (SCEF) that network slice instance provided for them.
provides a means to securely expose the
39
Configuration capability installed in the premises of the
Configuration refers to the capability to enterprise. This makes campus
allow vertical customers to adjust and networks very flexible (i.e. build out
modify the network functions as well as independent of an already existing
underlying resources within the network public network) as they are limited to a
slice instance provided for them. small number of devices, which allows
the rollout of new hardware fast and
Full operation capability efficiently.
Full operation is the highest operational
capability that could be provided via Typically for local coverage a single
slicing method. Within the provided administrative domain is sufficient to
network slice instance, vertical customers serve the customer or use case.
could have full control of the network Nationwide coverage
service operation. Therefore, they are Nationwide coverage requested by
self-responsible for the network service industries, which do not need
assurance and maintenance within the coverage outside a specific country.
limit set by the network operators. In Examples are utilities industries,
particular network access should remain government services and smart cities.
under the control of the operator. The
For this type of coverage, typically a
impact and the application of the
single administrative domain (e.g. a
regulatory obligations will have to be
single network operator) is sufficient.
studied in this approach.
For very demanding use cases,
This might be very helpful for the national roaming could be envisioned
customer in case of networks problems or in order to meet for instance the
outages for instance by configuring availability and coverage
backup paths. requirements. According to NGMN
[26] this is the “business vertical”
Coverage requirements
scenario.
Vertical requirements very much
differentiate in the type of coverage they Global coverage
require. Three main groups have been Global coverage is required by
identified: Local, nationwide and global companies and industries with
coverage. More details are provided in the worldwide points of presence or which
following. are selling their products globally. The
most obvious industry requiring global
Local coverage
coverage is automotive. Other
Local coverage is requested mostly by
examples are transport & logistics use
Industry 4.0 and healthcare industries
cases. Providing global coverage
in which a very specific geographical
normally means that network services
area needs to be covered, e.g. an
need to be provided across multiple
industry area or a hospital.
administrative domains. According to
Local coverage requirements could be NGMN [26] this is the “roaming”
met by a network slice (as a kind of scenario.
VPN based on an existing public
For this type of coverage, the network
network) restricted to a small number
slices used to serve customers need
of base stations or by so called
to be made available also when the
campus networks. A campus network
device is outside its home network.
is a dedicated physical network
40
Several solutions are discussed in network may export the blueprint of a
literature on how to achieve this. custom network slice used by a user
Three of the most prominent so that it can be instantiated and
approaches are briefly introduced: (1) administered by the visited mobile
the visited network could provide to network operator. (3) the home
the roaming user a network slice with network may extend the slice into the
equivalent functionality of the slice visited network, provided it has
used in the home network, e.g. using authorisation from the visited network
standardised slices. (2) the home to control the resources.
41
Cross-Standardisation Collaboration
Recommendations
E2E Network Slicing contains different ETSI ISG MEC named “MEC support for
technical domains as discussed in Section 3 Network Slicing” [24], which focuses on
(e.g. AN, CN, TN, Cloud), and many SDOs identifying the necessary support provided by
are working in parallel to provide slicing Multi-access Edge Computing for Network
solution under their area of competence. The Slicing and, in addition, how the orchestration
technical content is as a result fragmented. In of resources and services from multiple
order to form an E2E solution, significant administrative domains could facilitate that.
work is required in terms of cross-SDO This could be a potential candidate for cross-
cooperation and coordination, which will be SDO coordination for MEC topic.
explained in the following sections.
Coordination from Management
Coordination from System Architecture Perspective
Perspective
Transport Network Aspect
The overall 5G system architecture is under As shown in Figure 6 of Section 3,
the development of 3GPP SA2 Working management aspect is considered
Group, for whom Network Slicing is one of separately in different SDOs based on the
the fundamental design feature of the 5G targeted technical domain. 3GPP SA5
system. To enable E2E connectivity of Working Group is responsible for the life
Network Slicing across multiple technical cycle management of slices (e.g. creation,
domains, potential coordination between run-time assurance, etc.) in the 3GPP
3GPP and other SDOs is desired. For realm that contains the RAN and CN parts
instance, in an FMC (Fixed Mobile of the slices. Transport network, which is
Convergence) scenario, part of the E2E slice one essential part in E2E Network Slicing
may be provided using non-3GPP access solution, is not in 3GPP scope. TN slicing
such as WLAN or fixed access defined in management architecture is instead
BBF), therefore combined efforts between defined by BBF. To enable E2E
3GPP SA2 and BBF may be required to management of a slice, it is essential to
guarantee the correct deployment. align BBF and 3GPP SA5, in terms of
When considering slices that should fulfil use terminology, architecture, interfaces, etc.
cases with low latency requirements that can Moreover, interoperation between 3GPP
be provided using Multi-access Edge and BBF-defined slicing management
Computing (MEC) coordination between entities needs to be in place. For instance,
3GPP SA2 and ETSI MEC [21] would be 3GPP SA5-defined slicing management
required. For instance, some information system needs to send transmission link
such as application instances locations, traffic requirements to BBF-defined TN slicing
rules, identification of traffic that needs to be management system. Vice versa, 3GPP
offloaded to the edge needs to be slicing management system needs to
exchanged between 3GPP network and ETSI retrieve TN information to establish the
MEC system for the purpose of selection transmission link between 3GPP network
and/or reselection of the User Plane Function function entities. The northbound interface
(UPF) and potentially to relocate the that is used for such information
application. There is an ongoing work item in exchange should be aligned between BBF
42
and 3GPP, and IETF could be used to interfaces and protocols etc., but as in the
standardise the protocol of the case of slice management, it does not cover
northbound interface according to the transport as well as virtualisation aspects.
requirements collected by BBF. Hence, the coordination between 3GPP SA3
and ETSI ISG NFV, BBF, and IETF are
Virtualisation Aspect necessary for an overall E2E security.
Virtualisation and cloudification have been
deployed in 4G cores already. This Coordination between SDOs and Open
technologies will continue to be the major Source
features in the 5G new core (5GC) Other than the work from SDOs, open source
design. 5GC network functions are is fast becoming more and more prominent in
modularised (so that they can be the scope of 5G. For example, Open Network
executed as software in a datacentre) and Automation Platform (ONAP), an initiative
interconnected with each other using from operators in cooperation with the Linux
service based interfaces. Hence, to Foundation, is an open source software
deploy and manage slices in a virtualised platform that delivers capabilities for the
network environment, 3GPP SA5 should design, creation, orchestration, monitoring,
coordinate with ETSI ISG NFV. and life cycle management of VNFs, carrier-
Coordination from Security Perspective scale Software Defined Networks (SDNs) as
well as higher-level services [22]. Open
Security is a built-in feature of the overall Source MANO (OSM) is another operator
system architecture that supports Network initiative from ETSI community, which aims to
Slicing in order to provide the fundamental deliver production-quality open source
guarantee of the telecom services as well as Management and Orchestration (MANO)
the specific requirements of the safety-critical stack aligned with ETSI NFV [23]. Currently,
applications and services. Way beyond the there is a lacks of clear understanding of the
slice-internal and slice-specific security relationship between standardisation and
provisions and the access control to the open source especially at the management
slicing subsystem, slice security should be domain as well as competition between open
also systematically designed to empower source initiatives.
secure and reliable E2E slice life cycle
management. As mentioned previously, ETSI’s Zero touch
network and Service Management (ZSM)[24]
E2E slicing security can be implemented at aims to help in this area of coordination
different levels and dimensions, e.g. from among SDOs and open source solutions.
communication method (e.g. authentication) Part of its mandate is to analyse gaps and
to isolation method (e.g. soft isolation based help align approaches from these different
on virtualisation or hard isolation based on organisations. Currently, one of the work
physical entity). Security related work is items in ZSM is to develop an end to end
carried out in multiple SDOs in parallel as view of Network Slicing management looking
well. 3GPP SA3 works on the across domains, for example, 3GPP network
security/isolation method for Network Slicing, slice management and the ETSI NFV
including the definition of overall virtualisation platforms.
implementation, strategies, standard
43
Other recommendations
Additional recommendations are: telecommunication and vertical industries
are required to cooperatively find
It turned out that for many KPIs, e.g. for
solutions for that.
latency, different interpretations and
Some use cases and industries have very
understanding throughout the industries
demanding availability and reliability
exist. Therefore, it is recommended to
requirements. However, it is not well
specify/define relevant KPIs in order to
understood how these requirements can
get a common understanding.
be met, e.g. which mechanisms can be
Requirements some industries pose on
applied to improve availability and
5G and Network Slicing have been
reliability beyond state of the art networks.
derived from today’s use cases and
It is recommended to have a deeper look
processes. However, today these
into these aspects.
requirements are met using fixed line
It would be beneficial to standardise a
network technologies as like industrial
small set of globally available network
Ethernet or optical fibres. These
slices serving use cases that are of
requirements very often are too
interest in many countries and common to
demanding for cellular networks as 5G.
different verticals and use cases.
Therefore, discussions between
46
6
Regulatory Aspects
47
Regulatory aspects
Network Slicing will be a feature of 5G - this experience is inherently
is based upon software defined network and counterproductive.
network function virtualisation. In reviewing Consumers should have the ability to
Network Slicing, regulation should be choose between competing service
considered and views on key areas are providers and a variety of offers / tariffs to
provided below. However, from a regulator’s best meet their individual needs.
perspective they will want to understand Mobile network operators compete along
what, if anything changes from developments many dimensions, such as pricing of
in technology, and how this impacts service packages and devices, different
customers. These changes might impact and calling and data plans, innovative
/ or be constrained by the regulatory aspects applications and features, and network
listed below. Further analysis is required to quality and coverage. The high degree of
understand the evolution of the regulatory competition in the mobile market provides
aspects to align with these changes. ample incentives to ensure customers
Net Neutrality enjoy the benefits.
Where there is flexibility, mobile network
While there is no single definition of net operators are able to offer a bespoke,
neutrality, it is often used to refer to issues managed service to providers of new
concerning the optimisation of traffic over connected products, such as autonomous
networks. cars, which could not exist without
Mobile network operators face unique constant, high-integrity connectivity.
operational and technical challenges in Operators can also enter into commercial
providing fast, reliable internet access to their arrangements with content and
customers, due to the shared use of network application providers that want to attract
resources and the limited availability of users by offering free access, that is,
spectrum. Network Slicing may provide zero-rating their content so mobile
options of how mobile operator networks can subscribers are not ‘charged’ for the data
better meet customer needs. usage. These kinds of arrangements
enable product and service innovation,
As the net neutrality debate has evolved,
deliver added value to consumers and
policymakers have come to accept that
generate new revenue for network
network management plays an important role
operators, which face constant pressure
in service quality.
to enhance, extend and upgrade their
Industry position – networks.
To meet the varying needs of consumers, Quality of Service
mobile network operators need the ability The quality of a mobile data service is
to actively manage network traffic and the characterised by a number of important
flexibility to differentiate between different parameters, notably speed, packet loss,
types of traffic. delay and jitter. It is affected by factors such
Regulation that affects network operators’ as mobile signal strength, network load, and
handling of mobile traffic is not required. user device and application design.
Any regulation that limits their flexibility to
manage network, service quality and Industry Position
provide consumers with a satisfactory Competitive markets with minimal
regulatory intervention are best able to
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deliver the quality of mobile service When data is allowed to flow freely across
customers expect. Regulation that sets a national borders it enables organisations to
minimum quality of service is operate, to innovate and to access solutions
disproportionate and unnecessary. The and support anywhere in the world. Enabling
quality of service experienced by mobile cross-border data transfers can help
consumers is affected by many factors, organisations adopt data-driven digital
some of which are beyond the control of transformation strategies that ultimately
operators, such as the device type, benefit individuals and society. Policies that
application and propagation environment. inhibit the free flow of data through unjustified
Defining specific quality targets is neither restrictions or local data storage
proportionate nor practical. requirements can have an adverse impact on
Mobile networks are technically different consumers, businesses and the economy in
from fixed networks; they make use of general.
shared resources to a greater extent and Cross-border transfers of personal data are
are more traffic-sensitive. Mobile network currently regulated by a number of
operators need to deal with continually international, regional and national
changing traffic patterns and congestion, instruments and laws intended to protect
within the limits imposed by finite network individuals’ privacy, the local economy or
capacity, where one user’s traffic can national security. While many of these
have a significant effect on overall instruments and laws adopt common privacy
network performance. principles, they do not create an
The commercial, operational and interoperable regulatory framework that
technological environment in which mobile reflects the realities, challenges and potential
services are offered is continuing to of a globally connected world. Emerging
develop. Mobile network operators must frameworks such as the APEC Cross-Border
have the freedom to manage and Privacy Rules and the EU’s Binding
prioritise traffic on their networks. Corporate Rules allow organisations to
Regulation which rigidly defines a transfer personal data generally under certain
particular service quality level is conditions. These frameworks contain
unnecessary and is likely to impact the accountability mechanisms and are based on
development of these services. internationally accepted data protection
Competitive markets with differentiated principles.
commercial offers and information that
allows consumers to make an informed However, their successful adoption is
choice deliver the best outcomes. If undermined by the implementation by
regulatory authorities are concerned governments of ‘data localisation’ (also
about quality of service, they should known as ‘data sovereignty’) rules that
engage in dialogue with the industry to impose local storage requirements or use of
find solutions that strike the right balance local technology. Such localisation
on transparency of quality of service. requirements can be found in a variety of
Cross-Border Data Transfers sector- and subject-specific rules including for
financial service providers, the public sector
The global digital economy depends on or professional confidentiality reasons and
cross-border data transfers to deliver crucial are sometimes imposed by countries in the
social and economic benefits to individuals, belief that supervisory authorities can more
businesses and governments. easily scrutinise data that is stored locally.
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It is envisaged that network slices may be different approaches to privacy while
utilised to offer services outside of the home promoting appropriate standards of data
jurisdiction, potentially in a similar manner to protection and to allow accountable
international roaming. Any transfer of data companies to build scalable and
across borders may need to consider consistent data privacy programmes.
regulatory requirements.
Requirements for companies to use local
Industry Position data storage or technology create
Cross-border transfers of data play an unnecessary duplication and cost for
important role in innovation, competition companies and there is little evidence that
and economic and social development. such policies produce tangible benefits for
Governments can facilitate cross-border local economies or improved privacy
data flows in a way that is consistent with protections for individuals.
consumer privacy and local laws by To the extent that governments need to
supporting industry best practices and scrutinise data for official purposes,
frameworks for the movement of data and mobile network operators would
by working to make these frameworks encourage them to achieve this through
interoperable. Governments can also existing lawful means and appropriate
ensure that these frameworks have strong intergovernmental mechanisms that do
accountability mechanisms, and that the not restrict the flow of data.
authorities can play a role in
Illegal Content
overseeing/monitoring their
implementation. Governments should only Today, mobile networks not only offer
impose measures that restrict cross- traditional voice and messaging services, but
border data flows if they are absolutely also provide access to virtually all forms of
necessary to achieve a legitimate public digital content via the internet. In this respect,
policy objective. The application of these mobile network operators offer the same
measures should be proportionate and service as any other internet service provider
not arbitrary or discriminatory against (ISP). This means mobile networks are
foreign suppliers or services. mobile inevitably used, by some, to access illegal
network operators welcome frameworks content, ranging from pirated material that
such as the APEC Cross-Border Privacy infringes intellectual property rights (IPR) to
Rules or the EU’s Binding Corporate racist content or child sexual abuse material
Rules, which allow accountable (child pornography).
organisations to transfer data globally, Laws regarding illegal content vary
provided they meet certain criteria. Such considerably. Some content, such as child
mechanisms are based on commonly sexual abuse material, is considered illegal
recognised data privacy principles and around the world, while other content, such
require organisations to adopt a
as dialogue that calls for political reform, is
comprehensive approach towards data illegal in some countries while being
privacy. This encourages more effective protected by ‘freedom of speech’ rights in
protection for individuals than formalistic others.
administrative requirements while helping
to realise potential social and economic Communications service providers, including
benefits. Such frameworks should be mobile network operators and ISPs, are not
made interoperable across countries and usually liable for illegal content on their
regions to the greatest extent possible in networks and services, provided they are not
order to seek convergence between aware of its presence and follow certain rules
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e.g., ‘notice and take-down’ processes to abuse content. The GSMA’s Mobile
remove or disable access to the illegal Alliance Against Child Sexual Abuse
content as soon as they are notified of its Content provides leadership in this area
existence by the appropriate legal authority. and works proactively to combat the
misuse of mobile networks and services
Mobile network operators are typically alerted
by criminals seeking to access or share
to illegal content by national hotline
child sexual abuse content.
organisations or law-enforcement agencies.
When content is reported, operators follow Regarding copyright infringement and
procedures according to the relevant data piracy, the mobile industry recognises the
protection, privacy and disclosure legislation. importance of proper compensation for
In the case of child sexual abuse content, rights holders and prevention of
mobile network operators use terms and unauthorised distribution.
conditions, notice and take-down processes
Summary
and reporting mechanisms to keep their
services free of this content. At this stage there do not seem to be new
regulatory challenges as a result of Network
The issues in relation to illegal content,
Slicing. However, the challenge(s) may be
liability, regulatory and self-regulatory
on how best to meet existing regulatory
obligations and commitments will need to be
obligations as result of Network Slicing.
addressed with the introduction of Network
Slicing. These may also vary depending on Implementation of Network Slicing may also
how slices are implemented. need to consider a range of other regulatory
issues from, but not limited to - access to
Industry Position emergency calls, support of law enforcement
The mobile industry is committed to and government access to data and the
working with law enforcement agencies related legislative frameworks that enables
and appropriate authorities, and to having this, to consumer protection and competition
robust processes in place that enable the policy.
swift removal or disabling of confirmed
instances of illegal content hosted on their
services. ISPs, including mobile network
operators, are not qualified to decide what
is and is not illegal content, the scope of
which is wide and varies between
countries. As such, they should not be
expected to monitor and judge third-party
material, whether it is hosted on, or
accessed through, their own network.
National governments decide what
constitutes illegal content in their country;
they should be open and transparent
about which content is illegal before
handing enforcement responsibility to
hotlines, law-enforcement agencies and
industry.
The mobile industry condemns the misuse
of its services for sharing child sexual
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7
Next Steps
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Next steps
To date within GSMA we have looked at the Radio to serve new and existing customers.
Network Slicing topic as a new capability that We will also use 5G NR to deliver against
will be delivered with the new 5G core MNO requirements like Fixed Wireless
network. We still have considerable work to Access substitution. Operators are beginning
do, including; definition of slice types and the to differentiate between Consumer focused
parameter sets that may exist within different networks and Business or Vertical focused
slices, validate 3GPP defined Slices, networks.
coordinate industry Slicing activities, explore
While 5G core and the real slicing capability
Business Models, market sizes, market
allow for significantly more efficient
opportunities and value chains, etc. This will
deployment of sliced capability, orchestration
form basis for the deliverables in the next
and configuration mechanisms, operators are
phase. We welcome input from Operators,
willing to explore opportunities for service
Vendors and customers into this technical
differentiation and optimisation offered by
paper.
pre-5G solutions.
Also, many operators are not waiting for 5G
Consequently, another deliverable in the next
Core (3GPP Release16) to explore the
phase will be a paper focusing on the
concept of delivering differentiated
emerging (or bottom up) trend of using
capabilities to different customer sets.
Multiple Dedicated Core Networks (MDCN) to
Operators have different physical and
deliver differentiated services and solutions
increasingly virtual networks and network
utilising existing EPS system capabilities. We
capabilities today, including; 2G, 3G, 4G, NB-
anticipate this paper to be available at the
IoT, Emergency Services LTE, etc.
end of Q318. We welcome input from
Virtualisation of network elements facilitates
Operators, Vendors and customers.
the automation of network orchestration,
configuration and deployment. Current Finally, it is important to continue the
capabilities like Edge Cloud allow us to start interactions with the vertical industries in
to explore lower latency opportunities, and in order to better understand their use cases
the near future we will begin to add 5G New and requirements.
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Annex A Document Management
A.1 Document History
Version Date Brief Description of Change Approval Editor /
Authority Company
It is our intention to provide a quality product for your use. If you find any errors or omissions,
please contact us with your comments. You may notify us at 5GNetworks@gsma.com
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