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Australia’s Commonwealth Bank has emerged as one of the early enterprise enthusiasts for 5G in the country, while Australian consumers are being wooed by the major telcos ahead of mainstream deployment of the technology starting this year. Working with Telstra and Ericsson, Commonwealth Bank is exploring 5G to examine what the bank of the future might look like, and how the technology can reduce the network infrastructure in its branch network. Pete Steel, executive general manager of the bank’s digital and retail operations and technology, said 5G has significant potential to enhance the availability, stability and performance of its network infrastructure, enabling it to provide quicker and better digital experiences for consumers. Consumers are also in the sights of the major 5G network frontrunners such as Telstra and Optus, which have started to deploy 5G in a handful of areas. Vocus, meanwhile, has signalled its plans to market 5G as a better consumer alternative than entry-level NBN (National Broadband Network). In ...