David Cameron has announced that the UK plans to partner with Germany to develop the next generation 5G mobile broadband.

The Prime Minister made the announcement at the CeBIT technology show in Hannover where he said that the UK cannot afford to miss out on the development of 5G. It is part of Cameron’s plans to make the UK the most digital nation in the G8. See also: EE set to roll out faster LTE-A ‘4.5G’ mobile broadband in London.

“With 4G, an 800 megabyte movie takes around 40 seconds to download; with 5G that would be cut to one second,” said Cameron.

“This is a prize that researchers all over the world are going for and so I am delighted to announce a new collaboration, between the University of Dresden, King’s College University in London and the University of Surrey.” he added.

See also: 4G vs 3G network hands-on speed test.

The prime minister also said he wants the ‘Internet of Things’ to move “from a slogan to a fact,” with a £73 million fund of public money going to research moving things in this direction. Read: Ofcom announces 5G plans for beyond 4G.

“These are developments that could allow literally billions of everyday objects to talk to each other over the internet – using low-cost, low-power chips,” Cameron said.

“This has enormous potential to change our lives. Electricity meters that talk to the grid to get you the best deals. Health monitors that keep an eye on your heart rate. Water pipes that warn of a fall in pressure. And yes, even a fridge that can order you milk when it notices you are getting low.”

As part of the new Spectrum Strategy which will see unused ‘white space’ opened up for wider commercial use, Cameron said the aim is to double the economic benefits of spectrum to UK companies and consumers from roughly £50bn today, to £100bn in 2025.

via UK’s 5G tech could facilitate movie downloads in 1 second | PCWorld.