The theories, fuelled by celebrities such as actor Woody Harrelson and singer M.I.A, have the potential to create permitting hiccups, Mr. Meanwhile, a surge in baseless conspiracy theories linking 5G wireless technology to the spread of the coronavirus has led to a flurry of arson and vandalism targeting cell towers across the United Kingdom. “With millions upon millions of North Americans losing their jobs, thousand-dollar phones don’t look so hot right now,' Mr. That could prompt manufacturers such as Apple to delay the launch of 5G-capable phones, says Sascha Segan, lead mobile analyst for technology publication PCMag. In order for consumers to adopt the technology, they will need to purchase expensive new handsets – something that many won’t be in the position to do for some time. “When you make these large investments, you need the demand to be there to right away see adoption of the technology,” Mr. With consumers feeling stretched because of the economic fallout of the pandemic, demand for 5G-capable phones is expected to wane, making it harder for telecom service providers to justify the sizable investments needed to build out the new networks, Mr. “Network expansion is on the back burner.' Serentschy, who is based in Vienna, but currently, many longer-term projects are on hold given the focus on keeping networks running amid a surge in usage, Mr. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada has not announced any delays to its coming auction, although it has extended the deadline for companies to pay their annual spectrum licence fees by several months.Īnother consideration is that companies who purchase spectrum are required to deploy it within a certain time frame, said Georg Serentschy, a former industry regulator in Europe and consultant who advises Telus Corp. Running an auction process at a time when bidders don’t have an appetite to shell out means Ottawa “might not get the full value of the spectrum,” he said. And it could be in the federal government’s best interest to postpone the sale.

5g rollout canada