QUALCOMM, Inc. (NASDAQ:QCOM) has set sights on the $8 billion 5G infrastructure market. Best known for mobile chips known to power some of the biggest brands in the smartphone arena, the chip giant has unveiled new chips and software products that it hopes will be at the center of the ongoing 5G revolution.
Qualcomm 5G Ambitions
The new chips' unveiling is part of the company's push to give wireless providers access to cheaper hardware for developing 5G network. Qualcomm is looking to undercut Ericson and Huawei that have been relied upon to provide hardware for 5G connections.
The new Radio Access Network chips will be embedded inside base stations packed with antennae's to enable the 5G connection. Likewise, they should allow the company to get a piece of the burgeoning 5G network infrastructure market. The market is growing by the day, given the unveiling of 5G capable devices.
The RAN chips on offer support several bands of 5G, including speedy millimeter-wave connections that require more base stations. The 5G infrastructure market presents an important growth opportunity as 5G connections are growing everywhere, from smartphones to powering automotive.
5G Competition
Unlike other companies making base stations or infrastructure for wireless companies, Qualcomm is solely focused on supplying baseband, processing, and RF chips. It is to supply software that allows the companies to build virtualized radio access networks.
Some of the companies that Qualcomm is targeting with its new slate of 5G chips are companies engaged in the development of base stations as well as companies that create cellular infrastructure. The chip giant intends to provide the companies with engineering samples in 2022.
Integration won’t be a challenge as a good number of Qualcomm products are already compatible with O-RAN, which is a standard backed by Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ), AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), and T-Mobile Us Inc. (NASDAQ: TMUS). However, Qualcomm faces stiff competition in the segment as Intel and Hewlett Packard Enterprise's likes already offer base station compatible parts.