Davos – Next-generation 5G mobile internet technology marks the beginning of the "fourth industrial revolution,” the chief executive of Turkey’s leading telecoms player has said.

5G is viewed as a technology that can support the developing Internet of Things (IOT) market, which refers to millions – or potentially billions – of internet-connected devices that are expected soon to come on to the market.

Kaan Terzioğlu, the chief executive of Turkcell, which has a market capitalisation of $23 billion, touted the potential of the technology, saying that while 4G revolutionised the consumer market, 5G could transform the industrial space.

"I think this is the beginning of the fourth generation of the industrial revolution. This will be the platform linking billions of devices together,” Terzioğlu told CNBC at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Turkcell has been working on 5G technologies since 2013 and this week completed a test in partnership with Ericsson, using the next-generation Internet.

Terzioğlu did not give a timeline for when 5G could become mainstream but some industry players have suggested a 2018 deadline is possible. South Korean telecoms firm KT said it wanted to launch a 5G network at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.

Companies from Nokia to Huawei are all testing 5G technology.

Agencies