Companies developing the emerging 5G technology are calling for comprehensive cooperation across borders to enhance 5G development, as the industry faces increasing politically motivated challenges in the recent US ban on Huawei, according to companies attending a press conference held on Thursday by the Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA) in Beijing.

The technology is at a crucial stage. In April, China Telecom, China Mobile and China Unicom all announced plans for pilot 5G network coverage in Chinese cities. Official 5G licenses are also expected to be issued this year, which could mean an era of tremendous technological innovation.

However, the process of 5G development and application has also been marred by increasing difficulties often driven by politics and trade protectionism, as the US wages new challenges on leading 5G company Huawei by cutting its supply routes from US companies including Google, Qualcomm and ARM. 

The US' meddling with the international industry chain of 5G can play havoc with the development of the technology, according to industry insiders. 

Ma Tao, executive vice president of Nokia Shanghai Bell Co, a joint venture between a state-owned enterprise and telecom company Nokia Co, told the Global Times that any form of protectionism in trade is adverse to the development of the emerging 5G technology and will hurt the 5G ecosystem.

"Technology should remain in the field of technology," Ma said. "The ultimate goal of technology is to bring better products to people and make a better quality of life possible. It is a shame when politics meddle with it."

In today's globalized world, the development of technology needs the synergy effects of different companies and sectors, as well as different markets in different parts of the world, Ma explained. 

"We as the companies in the sector would really like to see a market free of any form of protectionism or politically driven interference that severs international cooperation."

Robust international cooperation is needed from the perspective of cost-benefit analysis, Ma added. 

"The cost of 5G research and development is reaching several trillion yuan," Ma noted. "At this key point of 5G development, protectionism can have a far-reaching negative influence on the development of the technology."

Ma's view that 5G needs global cooperation to develop also resonates with other companies in the industry. Zhang Zhiwei, head of marketing for Northeast Asia at Ericsson, a multinational telecommunications company, observed that as an emerging technology, a joint effort by different countries to explore and develop is essential for 5G. 

"The development of technology, especially its application, is highly unpredictable and it needs the innovation of a massive global market," Zhang said on the press conference on Thursday. 

When 3G was first rolled out, the hype was all about video chats over the phone, Zhang explained. However, instead of bringing about an era of video chats, 3G broke ground by transforming cellphones into an extension of PCs. 

The same is very likely to apply to 5G, Zhang said. Although applications such as the Internet of Things and driverless cars are already under development, there is still much more potential that only a free and open market can unleash.