StarHub and Malaysian telco U Mobile to trial 5G roaming in Singapore and Malaysia next year

StarHub and Malaysian mobile service provider U Mobile will conduct 5G standalone roaming trials in Singapore and Malaysia starting in the first quarter of next year, they said in a joint media statement on Monday (Dec 30).

The trials will be conducted in collaboration with Huawei and will be done independent of 4G network infrastructure. This is unlike many other roaming trials that use 5G non-standalone technology, the telcos said.

Use cases such as "live" cross-border holographic calls and multi-party video calls will be tested.

StarHub and U Mobile said they will examine aspects such as the "right commercial price point" for 5G roaming in both countries.

The trials will help establish key aspects such as the right network configurations and settings for 5G roaming.

StarHub's chief technology officer, Chong Siew Loong, said: "There is no better place to start 5G roaming trials than in Malaysia, our closest neighbour and one of our customers' top travel destinations."

U Mobile is already a roaming partner of StarHub, and the 5G roaming trial is the third 5G-related initiative StarHub has announced in December.

Earlier in the month, it announced a partnership with the National University of Singapore to use 5G technologies to design and test virtual reality and artificial intelligence solutions in a net-zero energy building.

It also earlier held a two-day pop-up 5G showcase for the public at its StarHub Green headquarters in Ubi.

Shares of mainboard-listed StarHub were unchanged at S$1.41 as at 1.32 pm on Monday.

This article was first published in The Business Times. Permission required for reproduction.