Huawei benefits outweigh drawbacks for Canada’s 5G network, says veteran telecom expert

Canada stands to gain more than it might lose from welcoming Huawei Technologies to help build a national 5G network, says a prominent telecom expert. Though not technically indispensable, the Chinese telecommunications giant offers multiple advantages for bringing the next-generation wireless network online.

Having more equipment suppliers offers greater competition, which benefits innovation, price and delivery time, says Mark Goldberg, head of Mark H. Goldberg & Associates Inc., a telecom industry consulting firm based in Thornhill, Ontario.

“Competition is good at all levels,” Goldberg, a former senior executive and network builder at Sprint Canada and Unitel Communications, said in an interview. “It’s good for the consumer and it’s good for the people who are building that network.”

The federal government, which is conducting a multi-agency review of Huawei’s potential role in Canada’s consumer 5G networks, is expected to decide soon.

5G (fifth-generation) mobile broadband networks will give people much faster connections and download speeds, while carrying vast amounts of data for applications such as virtual reality, smart communities, remote patient health care, robotics and driverless vehicles.

Canada’s wireless carriers are expected to invest $26 billion deploying 5G infrastructure between 2020 and 2026, boosting Canada’s GDP by about $40 billion a year, according to a report by consulting firm Accenture.

Rogers lights up Canada’s first 5G network

Rogers Communications last week became the first of Canada’s “Big Three” telecoms to turn on Canada’s first 5G network, a "test bed" that's initially using 2.5 GHz radio frequency spectrum in downtown areas of Vancouver, Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal. Consumers will have to wait several months to access the network with authorized 5G devices.

To build its 5G network, Rogers has partnered with Swedish equipment supplier Ericsson, which has a 5G network-focused artificial intelligence laboratory in Montreal and an R&D lab in Ottawa. Rogers describes Ericsson as “North America’s 5G provider of choice.”

“Through our multi-year, multi-billion-dollar technology deployment program, we will continue to invest in our network and IT systems, and partner with leaders to drive R&D and innovation for Canadian consumers and businesses,” Alexander Brock, Rogers’ senior vice-president, technology strategy, innovation and partnerships, said in an email to RE$EARCH MONEY.

Rogers also has a $20-million investment program in Canadian 5G research and development. The program includes the University of Waterloo, Ryerson University, the University of British Columbia, and a 5G laboratory at Communitech in Ontario.

For its part, Huawei has more than 1,000 employees in Canada and, since 2009, has invested $650 million here, with major labs in Ottawa, Toronto, Waterloo, Montreal and Vancouver, as well as plans for a lab in Quebec City. BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. both want to use Huawei gear in their 5G networks.

Among global competitors that include Ericsson, Nokia in Finland and Samsung in South Korea, Huawei has the most 5G equipment deployments around the world and has been a price leader in equipment cost, Goldberg says. “I think we (Canada) would lose something by losing access to one of the world’s major suppliers.”

Security is a top concern

Some security experts, however, warn that Huawei’s participation in Canada’s 5G network infrastructure could facilitate digital espionage by China’s security agencies.

The U.S. has been lobbying allied countries to shun Huawei. The Trump administration also wants Huawei’s chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, extradited from Canada to face allegations of violating U.S. sanctions on Iran.

But Goldberg points out that some of Canada’s trading partners are allowing Huawei to participate in their 5G networks because they believe they can manage any security risks. For example, the U.K., Germany and Belgium have “cybersecurity transparency and evaluation centres,” where telecom companies can access Huawei’s software and source code, and test network gear prior to deployment.

Goldberg, a co-founder of the annual Canadian Telecom Summit (June 15-17 in Toronto) of industry leaders, says having multiple suppliers in a network provides telecom firms with more redundancy and choice, which can enhance security. He says he has never seen any evidence of Huawei being a security problem.

“If we can find a way of mitigating the risks, then I would prefer to see Huawei permitted to be one of the competing suppliers in building Canada’s networks,” Goldberg says.

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