Networking connectivity is increasingly based on wireless network technologies, especially in developing nations where the wired network infrastructure is not accessible to a large segment of the population. Wireless data network technologies based on 2G and 3G are quite common globally; 4G-based deployments are on the rise during the past few years. At the same time, the increasing high-bandwidth and low-latency requirements of mobile applications has propelled the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standards organization to develop standards for the next generation of mobile networks, based on recent advances in wireless communication technologies. This standard is called the Fifth Generation (5G) wireless network standard. This paper presents a high-level overview of the important architectural components, of the advanced communication technologies, of the advanced networking technologies such as Network Function Virtualization and other important aspects that are part of the 5G network standards. The paper also describes some of the common future generation applications that require low-latency and high-bandwidth communications.
