The City of Melbourne is working with Australia's largest telecommunication providers to trial emerging technologies including 5G and the Internet of Things (IoT) in a newly established testbed.
The City of Melbourne has brought together key telecommunication providers along with business and industry leaders, to help our community understand the capabilities of 5G and IoT and explore how they can benefit Melbourne.
Deputy Lord Mayor Arron Wood said the testbed is the first of its kind in Australia as Melbourne prepares for 5G licences to commence in March 2020.
"5G will bring increased data speeds, better coverage, better connections and the ability for more devices to use the network at once," the Deputy Lord Mayor said.
"Through this testbed we want to work closely with telecommunication providers and technology companies to explore the capabilities of 5G and how it enables emerging technologies. It's an opportunity to bring together the best minds to plan for the future, understand the challenges our cities face while delivering for our rapidly growing population."
Located within the Melbourne Innovation District - City North in Carlton, testbed partners will be given the chance to explore optimal placement and design of 5G and IoT infrastructure, establish protocols for data sharing, management, privacy and security, and help establish effective partnerships and governance models for emerging technology testbeds.
Lessons learnt from this testbed will help inform how the city continues to harness 5G and IoT to solve city challenges.
"This is an amazing opportunity for us to have hands on experience with the future of high-speed connectivity," Deputy Lord Mayor Arron Wood said.
The first emerging technologies testbed partners will be announced during Melbourne Knowledge Week 2019.
