# Overview of Mobile Communications in Colombia and Introduction to 5G
## 1 Introduction
### Current Networks
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c} \hline \hline
**Generation** & \multicolumn{2}{c}{**Advantages**} & \multicolumn{2}{c}{**Disadvantages**} \\ \hline  & & & - & Low speed and limited services. \\  & & & - & Analogue modulation. \\ \(1\)G & - & Low energy consumption. & - & Only voice services are allowed. \\ \(1\)G & - & Ease of deployment. & - & Lack of standard. \\  & & & - & High costs of mobile devices. \\  & & & - & Low coverage. \\ \hline  & & - & Digital modulation & & \\  & - & Encryption of communications. & & \\  & - & Higher spectral efficiency compared to 1G. & - & A large number of standards. \\  & - & Offers additional services such as SMS (short & - & Communication failures in the early stages of \\  & & message service) or MMS (multimedia & deployment caused by digitization. \\  & & messaging service). & & \\ \hline  & & - & Higher-quality voice and data transmission. & & \\ \(3\)G & - & Allows access to the Internet. & - & Costly infrastructure. \\  & - & Offers multimedia services. & - & Cell breathing effect. \\  & - & Voice over IP. & & \\ \hline  & & - & Higher spectral efficiency. & & \\  & - & Higher bandwidth. & - & High power consumption. \\ \(4\)G & - & High transmission speeds. & - & Hardware complexity. \\  & - & Increased privacy and security. & & \\  & - & All IP. & & \\ \hline  & & - & Offers the highest speed rates among all & & \\  & & generations. & - & High terminal equipment costs. \\  & - & High bandwidth. & - & High infrastructure costs. \\ \(5\)G & - & High security. & - & The use of millimeter bands poses \\  & - & Improved Quality of Service (QoS). & & coverage problems. \\  & - & Low latency. & & \\  & - & Facilitates IoT implementation. & & \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table} 
Table 1: Advantages and disadvantages of different generations of mobile telephony. Source: [6; 7; 8; 9; 10]. communications services in Colombia [11]. In addition, the ICT Plan 2018-2022 aims to migrate 10 million users to access the Internet through 4G before the end of 2022 [13]. Following government guidelines, mobile telephone operators providing services in Colombia began the migration process. In this regard, Tigo-UNE informs that by the end of October 2022 it will close its 2G network [14]. Claro plans to dismantle its 2G network by December 2022 at the latest, concentrating its investments in the 4G network and the future 5G network [15]. Other operators, such as Movistar and Avantel, do not provide information on the 2G closure process. However, these companies are expected to carry out the process in harmony with MinICT guidelines. Today, mobile communications go beyond simple person-to-person interconnection, allowing users to perform multiple tasks through cellular devices. However, the deployment of mobile networks does not exclusively affect human communication; they have also become an important tool for change in the development of different sectors of the economy. Connectivity and high-speed connection rates (especially through mobile devices) will become increasingly important in people's daily activities and in the operation of businesses and institutions. In this context, IoT represents a business opportunity for cellular network operators, as IoT devices often need to connect over wide area networks to enable their application in different scenarios. Since the concept of IoT was introduced to consumers in 2009, predictions about its evolution have been coming true [16], and as a result of this development, IoT devices are connecting in smaller numbers via 2G or 3G networks, and since 2019, connections via technologies such as Narrow Band IoT (NB-IoT) or CAT-M are increasing [17]. Projections presented in [18] foresee some 27 billion connected IoT devices worldwide. Thus, populations, businesses, or institutions that are not connected or have limited coverage are more likely to be excluded from access to mobile networks, which reduces their quality of life [19].