NGMN envisions 5G as an end-to-end system that is
designed to deliver value and empower various businesses,
enhancing productivity, sustainability and well-being for a
fully mobile and connected society of 2020 and beyond [1-3].
5G will enable a new range of use cases, through expansion of
the network capability envelope, like achievable data rates,
latency, and connection density. Since not all use cases require
the same performance and functionality, 5G should move away
from a monolithic design based on the most stringent
requirements, as this will be too expensive. Thus, 5G should
include by design embedded flexibility and scalability of
capabilities, to enable wide range of use cases and to facilitate
innovation through various business and partnership models.
Leveraging virtualized and programmable networks, functions
should be designed in a modular manner, so that they can be
deployed on demand. Therefore, 5G will be a network of polymorphism,
powered by new and enhanced radio access
technologies, flexibly deployable network functions, and endto-end
orchestration.