Streaming in the City

We made history by achieving the UK’s first successful 5G test independent of existing 4G technology.

Alongside experts from Vodafone and Swedish telecoms company Ericsson, a team of our academics – led by Professor Mischa Dohler, Chair Professor of Wireless Communications within King’s Department of Informatics – used a prototype device that employs multiple antennae to send and receive data more efficiently in crowded areas.

When culture meets technology

The trial brought together King’s cultural connections as well as its work in connectivity, demonstrating the future potential of 5G at a live-streamed international concert hosted at London’s Guildhall School of Music & Drama.

Musicians in London were accompanied by Professor Dohler, who is an accomplished pianist and composer alongside his role as a researcher. His performance with the Peter Wiegold Ensemble was streamed in real-time from Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate Museum into the Guildhall via camera feeds processed through 5G data transmission.

London: the perfect testing ground

Explaining why London is the perfect test bed for 5G technology, Professor Dohler said, "Testing certain parameters of the technology in a city such as London is much closer to the truth of a future 5G system than, for example, a smaller city location or a suburban or rural site."

5G offers not just higher bandwidth, but also greater capacity, security and productivity. Our pioneering development and testing of 5G technology, funded by the Government’s Digital Strategy to drive forward new 5G business opportunities, reflects our commitment to research that is informed by and continues to contribute to the future health and wellbeing of London.