Audi, BMW, and Daimler have launched an alliance with mobile telecoms network equipment firms to create the 5G Automotive Association.
This partnership between Ericsson, Huawei, Intel, Nokia and Qualcomm and the German carmakers is set to “develop, test and promote communications solutions, support standardisation and accelerate commercial availability and global market penetration,” the founders said in a statement.
This includes speeding up development of necessary infrastructure for next generation data hungry cars as well as in-car 5G connectivity to enable a wide variety of devices to connect up and operate via the internet.
And importantly for the association is the setting up of a benchmark for the implementation of infotainment to automated driving and integration into smart city infrastructure.
Network equipment providers such as Ericsson and Nokia have said the 5G technology currently in development could be available for use as early as next year but that mass-market upgrades to mobile networks are not expected until around 2020, according to Reuters.
It said a spokesman for the newly formed partnership indicated there were talks with several network operators to join the association but no names as yet.
This pact is another example of Germany’s premium carmakers collaborating to build technology expertise necessary to take on new rivals like Uber and Google which are also working on autonomous driving technology.
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