If asked to forecast which country will be the world’s first 5G superpower, most would bet on China.

It stands to reason. Earlier this year, Beijing distributed licences to its three largest telecoms carriers – Huawei, ZTE and Datang – to roll out the next generation of mobile internet connectivity.

Huawei’s issues aside – Washington has slapped the group with a ban on buying crucial US-built components and software, citing national security concerns – China remains the undoubted front runner in the latest leg of the global telecoms technology race.

It is, therefore, of little surprise that the country is home to the world’s first 5G smart hotel, as part of an agreement signed by InterContinental Shenzhen and Huawei.

Announced in April, the hotel in Shenzhen – a strategically important city in south-eastern China that links Hong Kong to the mainland – becomes the industry’s first end-to-end 5G network.

Guests staying at the InterContinental Shenzhen, a Spanish-inspired luxury business property, can expect to experience a range of 5G applications through both their smartphones and customer-premises equipment (CPE) terminals. These include 5G robots, able to convey guest information, destination guidance and goods delivery; cloud computing terminals; cloud games; films in 4K ultra high-definition; and virtual reality (VR) rowing machines.

The rise of 5G

These recent events in Shenzhen beg the question: is the rest of the global hotel industry set to follow suit anytime soon?

The answer is not clear-cut. On the face of it, the benefits of 5G on the guest experience are selfevident: faster download speeds, increased network capacity and lower latencies (the lag between sending a command and receiving a response). But for 5G to become a going concern in the hotel industry, wider issues need to be ironed out first.

These mainly pertain to standardisation and commercial application – not to mention the fact that the network is still unavailable in most parts of the world. 5G only arrived in London in June, while the network is limited solely to a small number of business users and developers in New York.

However, that’s not to say hotel operators needn’t start planning for a future coverage roll-out, says Peter Gbedemah, a London-based telecoms entrepreneur and computer scientist.

“It’s still early days, but 5G is a fast-evolving area that will offer hospitality operators an opportunity to differentiate from competitors,” he explains. “Early adopters will be able to maximise their advantage through data analysis and trialling the use of 5G across a variety of products and services.”

Given the increasing feature of the internet of things (IoT) within the hospitality space – from hotel loyalty apps to voice interaction and smart thermostats – the incorporation of 5G would appear to make a lot of sense. The majority of today’s hotel guests have come to expect such levels of personalisation and service automation, whether it be in the form of VR or in-room voice assistants.

“Those that can really harness 5G’s use will prosper, creating a brand narrative and experience before guests have even set foot inside the hotel,” says Gbedemah, who founded telecoms service provider Gateway Communications in the late 1990s, before it was acquired by Vodafone Group for $700 million.

“It will be tremendously valuable for establishments that take advantage of this opportunity, distinguishing themselves from the competition and securing the interest and loyalty of their customers.”

“Gone are the days where hotels and room types are chosen from a brochure,” continues Gbedemah. “Augmented reality (AR) allows guests the ability to select rooms before they arrive, trialling their features on the website. Soon VR will transport them right inside the room with the option to configure it according to personal preference.”

Back to reality

On the face of it, the hospitality industry and AR and VR make for natural bedfellows – especially as 5G increases in prevalence and availability, and possibilities expand exponentially. Given that hotel groups are in the business of selling a physical environment to customers – both the hotel and its rooms – AR represents an important marketing tool.

This is already happening without 5G. A number of hotel groups, such as Premier Inn, have introduced such technology into their properties, where guests are able to point their smartphone at a map in their room and receive information on local points of interest.

In fact, the world’s first AR hotel is believed to be the Holiday Inn London Kensington Forum, the foray of which into deploying such technology long predates the Pokémon Go craze – or even the omnipresence of the fantastically powerful devices that we now wield as standard. Coinciding with the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the operator launched a campaign in which guests – with the aid of a smartphone or tablet – were able to see an array of the competing athletes in action across various parts of the hotel, from ping pong players at reception to rowers gliding down the corridors.

More recently, other groups have sought to use AR for the purposes of more colourful and inventive marketing campaigns, including Best Western, which partnered with the Disney Channel to virtually depict well-known Disney stars in various guises across its property.

One might be forgiven for dismissing the above as mere novelty peddling, but that would be to dismiss what today’s hotel guests want from their stay: immersive personalisation. 5G will enhance that offering.

As Scott Brothers, Group COO of ONVU Technologies, explains, “Personalisation in the hospitality industry is not a new notion. However, it can be drastically improved by technology, as there is a huge untapped resource.”

Most hotel operators have smartphone-wielding millennials in their sights when it comes to digital strategy. In its ability to make reams of information readily available to such guests – even before they have checked in. As evidenced by Pokémon Go, AR also taps into guests’ increasing proclivity towards immersive entertainment. For instance, guests staying at Residence Inn by Marriott’s properties are able to access a ‘Blippar’ app, which enables them access to an assortment of games – as well as customisable selfies – simply by pointing their phone at drinks coasters.

Elephant in the virtual room

Elsewhere, virtual room keys also seem set to take off. Using beacon technology – AR tech that deploys low-energy Bluetooth connections to communicate with smartphones and tablets – Marriott International has run pilot programmes to send virtual keys to guests, allowing them to open their door via their phone. Guests staying at Disney Resorts in Orlando, Florida can also do the same via the group’s My Disney Experience app.

According to a recent report by market research group Zion Market Research, the global AR and VR market is set to hit $814.7 billion by 2025; last year the market was valued at $26.7 billion. Again, 5G will be a major driver in the next phase of expansion and possibility.

That’s a considerable market growth spurt, and one which the hospitality industry would be wise to exploit. As the Pokémon Go trend taught us, consumers are more than willing to be taken to new places with the helping hand of an app and a smartphone. That means hotels are ripe for the take-off of AR.

But, as with so many other areas of tech, there remains considerable ground to cover. According to tech experts, the leap between current 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology – as found in most hotels – and 5G is seismic. The latter has been estimated to be 100 times faster than the former. For hoteliers, bridging such a technological chasm could require a period of acclimatisation. Practically speaking, is the hotel industry ready for 5G?

“While we’re slowly starting to see the emergence of sites where 5G is available, there still isn’t sufficient infrastructure in place yet to facilitate its full roll-out,” says Gbedemah.

“Hotels and other hospitality outlets will need to construct aerials and provide access for telecommunications networks to be installed within their properties. From a design point of view, newer establishments that can incorporate them in the initial construction phase are better off than those having to adapt their infrastructure later down the line.”

Consumers, says Gbedemah, have taken for granted the progression of telecommunications since the turn of the millennium. The marvel of wireless internet access at the hands of 3G – first introduced at the start of the last decade – now feels like another lifetime ago. At some point in the future, it will be 4G that is the distant, quaint memory.

“There will come a point where access to 5G will become a necessity and it’ll be used as a selling point for guests, just as Wi-Fi has,” he says. “This is particularly relevant for remote and high-end locations that can offer 5G as an additional feature that city-dwellers and business travellers have become used to.”

First to 5G

The strategic cooperation agreement signed between InterContinental Shenzhen, Shenzhen Telecom and Huawei will result in the industry’s first end-to-end 5G network with integrated terminals and cloud applications, enabling InterContinental Shenzhen to provide guests with innovative luxury experience and increased personalisation. Those behind the project hope it will open the door for ‘the digital transformation of entire hotel industry through 5G technology’.

Shenzhen Telecom is deploying Huawei’s 5G network equipment in the InterContinental Shenzhen to achieve continuous indoor and outdoor 5G coverage, which will serve as the platform for a new generation of hotel services. Guests will experience 5G hotel applications through 5G smartphones and customer-premises equipment (CPE) terminals, providing business travellers with a convenient and efficient working environment, and leisure travellers with a high-end, immersive entertainment experience.

Guests can access the 5G network through CPEs or their smartphones to experience high-speed 5G downloads and uploads. Service efficiency is improved with 5G intelligent robots that provide services including guest information, destination guidance and goods delivery. The presidential suites covered by the new network provide guests with 5G hotel services such as cloud VR rowing machines, cloud games and 4K movies. An experience zone that was built for the launch ceremony featured the world’s fastest mobile download rate, and a uniquely versatile telecommunications and entertainment guest experience.

“Since consumer spending is continuously increasing, consumers are craving higher quality and better consumer experiences,” Golden Sun, general manager of Shenzhen OCT Hotel Development observed at the launch event. “Guests expect new things and new experiences. Riding on the advanced technology, we can imagine our future and fly with it freely.

“On the other hand, we also hope to realise the comprehensive transformation of smart hotels and digital hotels by introducing 5G technology. We are willing to further cooperating with Shenzhen Telecom and Huawei to explore a more in-depth application of 5G in the hotel scene, we hope that our experience can help the digital construction of the hotel industry and tourism.”