EU-JAPAN COOPERATION WEBINAR ON 5G AND BEYOND ON OCT 21, 2020

EU-Japan Cooperation webinar on 5G and beyond was held on Oct 21^st, 2020 during CEATEC 2020, Japan’s largest IT and electronics tradeshow. It covered the topics of 5G Vertical applications, Research and Innovation beyond 5G and 5G Security initiatives, involving government, industry, academia and SDOs.

This webinar was co-chaired by the European Commission DG Connect and the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication (MIC) during CEATEC 2020 (www.ceatec.com/en/).

After the opening made by Mr. Mitsuhiro HISHIDA, Deputy Director General for International Economic Affairs, Global Strategy Bureau, MIC and by Mr. Tonnie DE KOSTER, Adviser for Digital Single Market International Outreach, DG Connect, European Commission, the webinar was structured in three sessions.

Vertical Use Cases of 5G

Speakers from the Japanese Government and Industry, from ETSI and the European Industry shared an update of the use case development status in both regions for 5G technology in various vertical application domains.

The keynote presentations were delivered by:

- Mr. Yuji ABURAKAWA, 6G Laboratories, NTT Docomo
- Mr. Takashi KANDA, Executive Director, 5G Vertical Service Office, FUJITSU
- Mr. Adrian SCRASE, Chief Technology Officer and Head of Mobile Competence Centre, ETSI
- Mr. Colin WILLCOCK (NOKIA), Chairman of the board of the 5G Infrastructure Association
- Mr. Andreas MÜLLER (BOSCH), General Chair of the 5G Alliance for Connected Industries and Automation

They were followed by a Q&A session and some very interesting exchanges among panellists. 

Strategies for Beyond 5G / 6G

Speakers from the Japanese Ministries MIC and METI presented the Beyond 5G promotion strategy and roadmap towards 6G of Japan. They were followed by a similar presentation from the European Commission DG Connect and a presentation of the perspective of the European industry. The keynote presentations were delivered by:

- Mr. Yasuhiro YANAGISAKO, Senior Planning Officer, Radio Policy Division, Radio Department, Telecommunications Bureau, MIC
- Mr. Kazuhito MATSUMOTO, ICT Standardization Division, Global Strategy Bureau, MIC
- Mr. Tatsuo OHKAWA, Director for 5G Industrial Policy, IT Industry Division, Commerce and Information Policy Bureau, METI
- Mr. Bernard BARANI, Deputy Head of Unit “Future Connectivity Systems”, DG Connect, European Commission
- Mr. Colin WILLCOCK (NOKIA), Chairman of the board of the 5G Infrastructure Association. 

5G Security Initiatives

Last but not least, the third session of the webinar was dedicated to Security Initiatives relative to 5G Technology. Speakers from the 3GPP, the Japanese Government (MIC and METI), the European Commission and the Industry presented their views on Global requirements for Security Assurance, Cybersecurity and 5G technology specific initiatives and discussed the benefits of a holistic approach to Security.

Keynotes speakers at this session were :

- Dr. Anand PRASAD, former Chair of the 3GPP SA3 Security Working Group
- Mr. Atsushi UMINO, Director, Office of the Director General for Cybersecurity, MIC
- Mr. Mikio TAKEUCHI, Director for International Affairs, Cybersecurity Division, Commerce and Information Policy Bureau, METI
- Dr. Yutaka MIYAKE, Senior Manager, KDDI Research
- Ms. Melanie SCHEIDT, Policy Assistant, European Commission DG Connect
- Mr. Mikko KARIKYTÖ, Chief Product Security Officer, ERICSSON

As a conclusion of this very dense and informative webinar, the two chairs indicated their willingness to pursue the exchange of information and develop the existing cooperation between EU and Japan on the development of global standards 5G and beyond.