(Yicai) Jan. 19 -- China will strengthen the innovation capability of fifth-generation network in the next step, according to the spokesperson of the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Innovation Technology.

China will enhance the construction of systems for 5G fusion application standards, accelerate the research on sixth-generation network technologies, carry out technological tests, and step up technological reserves, Zhao Zhiguo said at a press conference today. The main focus should be application scenarios in key sectors, he added.

Meanwhile, there should be quicker construction of 5G networks to realize an in-depth coverage of mobile networks in key venues and build an industrial private network to provide guarantees for industrial transformation and development, Zhao noted.

China should also ramp up policy guidance to ensure the development of 5G applications, giving full play to their role to drive the high-quality 5G network development across industrial and value chains, according to Zhao.

As of Dec. 31, China had 3.4 million 5G stations serving 805 million cellphone users, with 5G traffic accounting for 47 percent of the country’s total internet traffic, Zhao said. Based on research institutes’ forecast, 5G directly drove an economic output of CNY1.86 trillion (USD261.2 billion) last year, up 29 percent from the year before.

Editor: Futura Costaglione