Slow Uptake of 5G Goes Beyond FAA Delay

But even beyond the two-week delay, there is no dearth of reasons that companies are being careful on 5G. The cost and complexity of bringing out new infrastructure are holding back some, as well as the less-than-ringing demand, analysts say.

“It is clearly important to get 5G infrastructure right,” said John Roese, global chief technology officer at Dell Technologies Inc., and a former executive at Futurewei, Huawei Technologies Co.’s research and development unit.

Fifth-generation wireless service will provide faster connections to mobile-phone users, and opportunities for businesses to connect a much greater number of sensors and other devices to faster networks across industries, from manufacturing and logistics to retail and agriculture, analysts say. 5G systems also make it easier and quicker for companies to configure wireless services on their own, according to analysts.

“It’s the key to smart factories, smart cities, the transformation of healthcare, and offers all communities greater access to technology,” Mr. Roese said.

Any big update of the cellular networks is a time-consuming process, said Bill Menezes, a director at Gartner Inc. “There is a lengthy time frame between making the described airwaves available at auction, conducting the auctions, then actually deploying the infrastructure to support these airwaves,” he said. What’s more, apps that might generate demand and drive 5G adoption are still in relatively early stages of development.

Still, interagency spats could result in greater uncertainty on spectrum usage rights, which could slow investment in 5G across the board, said Joe Kane, director of broadband and spectrum policy at the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, a Washington, D.C., think tank.

“There are likely a lot of industrial Internet-of-things networks waiting to access C-band that will now have to wait a little longer,” said Mr. Kane, referring to the frequency range that AT&T and Verizon are counting on to boost their networks.

The first applications poised to make use of 5G’s capabilities—faster speeds, low latency and more dynamic capacity allocation—are likely to be on the enterprise side, in areas like factory automation and facility management, said James Ratcliffe, an analyst at Wall Street research firm Evercore ISI.

But so far 5G network deployment is running ahead of application deployment. “I can’t point to any companies that have big product launches ready to go that will be delayed,” he said.

Deutsche Post DHL Group sees many potential benefits for the supply chain from next-generation wireless technology, a spokesperson said—but added that the company has no “big splash” 5G projects in the pipeline. DHL plans to take advantage of 5G for robotics, scanners and tracking technology, along with smaller rollouts at individual warehouses, distribution centers and campuses, he said.

One use for 5G, said Jefferson Wang, global 5G and networks lead at Accenture PLC, might be in video analytics at a manufacturing plant, where, for instance, a machine wouldn’t turn on if employees weren’t wearing protective gear. The broadband capability and low latency of 5G could make “a decision in a split second to keep a worker out of danger,” he said.

“Very few companies are using 5G today, and no one has identified any mission-critical applications yet,” said Craig Moffett, senior managing director at media and telecom research firm MoffettNathanson, a division of SVB Financial Group. “The delay may not mean very much,” he said.

—Angus Loten contributed to this article.

Write to Suman Bhattacharyya at [email protected]