The mobile industry consensus is that there will be a new 5G radio access standard by 2020. However, 5G networks will be much more than just radio access as these future networks will be an integration of cross-domain networks.
Systems will be built in a way to enable logical 5G network slices, which will enable operators to provide networks on an as-a-service basis and meet the wide range of use cases the 2020 timeframe will demand.
With 5G network slicing, a single physical network can be partitioned into multiple virtual networks to offer optimal support for different types of services and for different types of customer segments.
