5G specifications promise a common and flexible-enough network infrastructure capable of satisfying diverse requirements of both current and future use cases. Two service types standardized in 5G are eMBB, without stringent delay guarantee, and URLLC, with stringent delay guarantee. We focus on a use case where data timeliness is the relevant quality parameter. We provide an economic rationale for the support of data-based services, that is, from the point of view of the profits attained by the service providers and operators (SP). More specifically, we focus on data-based services the quality of which is related to the Age of Information, and we assess two alternatives for the support of this sort of services by means of a 5G network: one that is based on the eMBB service type, and one that is based on the URLLC service type. These assessment is conducted in a duopoly scenario. We conclude that URLLC support provides a competitive advantage to an SP against a competitor SP that supports its service offering on eMBB. And that there is a slightly better situation for the users when the URLLC QoS constraint is stringent.

翻译：5G规范承诺构建一个通用且足够灵活的网络基础设施，能够满足当前及未来应用场景的多样化需求。5G标准化的两种服务类型包括：无严格时延保障的eMBB（增强移动宽带）与具有严格时延保障的URLLC（超可靠低时延通信）。本文聚焦于以数据时效性为核心质量参数的用例，从服务提供商与运营商（SP）的利润视角出发，为数据驱动型服务的支持提供经济学依据。具体而言，我们关注与信息年龄（Age of Information）相关的数据型服务质量，并评估通过5G网络支撑此类服务的两种方案：基于eMBB服务类型与基于URLLC服务类型。该评估在双寡头竞争场景下进行。研究结论表明：相较于采用eMBB支持服务供给的竞争对手SP，采用URLLC支持的SP具有竞争优势；此外，当URLLC的QoS约束较为严格时，用户体验呈现略微更优的状态。