Since the first introduction of 4G in the early 2010s, mobile data traffic has increased significantly, mainly because 4G networks can support more devices, services and applications, as well as greater cellular network coverage. With the advent of the 5G era, the mobile communication system will be further developed. Today, most countries and regions are already implementing their own 5G plans. Compared with China, South Korea and the United States, the three leading countries in the 5G market, the EU’s 5G plans are relatively slow.

The focus of this thesis is to explore various 5G deployment and migration options, as well as the current 5G status in different countries and regions. We start with current network technologies, compare and analyze various 5G deployment and migration options. Then we compare the 5G status of the EU with China, South Korea and the United States, and analyze the internal and external factors faced by the EU in the development of 5G. In these two analysis, we will consider several communication services that are currently used in the mobile network, including, but not limited to, voice/video calling and messaging, for both home usage and roaming usage. Finally, based on the above two analysis, suggestions for EU operators in 5G deployment and development are provided, along with recommendations for future research.