Managing 5G technology: Using quality of experience (QoE) to identify the innovation enhancement pattern according to the Indonesian market

The coevolution of 5G technological development and the growing market toward the 5G era has generated an innovation enhancement pattern. Identifying this pattern will reveal the 5G services in demand in the market and the infrastructure required for improving the 5G era. Herein, the patterns of 5G technological innovation enhancements are identified as expected in the Indonesian market. We use a novel approach that combines the users’ accumulated experience of mobile technology and market expectation. Two types of questionnaires are developed for this purpose: the first determines the quality of experience (QoE) parameters of 4G compared to the preceding 3G and 2G generations and the second analyzes the expectation of QoE parameters for 5G. This study defines 15 QoE parameters reflecting the aspects of infrastructure and services together with their impact on users. The users’ answers are classified into six clusters, which are translated into the innovation enhancement pattern. The findings reveal a pattern in which the Indonesian market is predominantly characterized by satisfied users who expect 5G to provide a better experience than 4G, 3G, and 2G despite the presence of some disappointed users in the market who require specialized innovation with variation in disruptive ways. In terms of 5G infrastructure, certain essential patterns include innovation enhancement to serve remote areas, the increasing significance of connectivity to non-cellular and free-service applications, and the market’s constant requirement for a better handset while the local industry may harness the opportunity to complete the 5G ecosystem. In terms of service, essential patterns include a strong need for 5G service innovation to render users more innovative, maintaining societal values while delivering the service, and the service innovation required to connect religious life and the 5G service, which should make users feel more healthy and fit. Finally, we discuss how the patterns recognized herein can help mobile operators to develop appropriate strategies for successfully implementing 5G technology.