Many Nations Focusing on 6 GHz With WRC-23 Nearing

Numerous nations have a regulatory focus on the 6 GHz band now, before the band is also center of attention at the 2023 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-23), international regulators said Thursday on a Wireless Innovation Forum 2021 panel. Several countries said they're looking at technological means to better allow spectrum sharing, particularly of the 6 GHz band.

Australia is getting input on low-power indoor use and very low-power radio LAN use of the lower part of the 6 GHz band, and anticipates investigating radio LAN use of the 6425-7125 MHz portion of the band and automated frequency coordination sharing across the band, said Chris Hose, Australian Communications and Media Authority executive manager-Spectrum Planning and Engineering Branch. He said midband spectrum is a key issue, as it is for many other nations, with Australia's current focus being the 3.7-4 GHz portion of the C band. He said there's interest in use cases that include both mobile networks and local area interests such as private or public enterprises servicing small geographic areas. He said protection of aeronautical altimeters is a key part of technical discussions, Hose said.

Singapore hasn't settled on whether the 6 GHz band should be allocated to Wi-Fi or mobile broadband, and will get industry input, said Harin Grewal, Infocomm Media Development Authority networks, technology and resource cluster director. The 2.1 GHz band was allocated for 3G in 2001, with the rights for that expiring at the end of December, and Singapore concluded an auction last week as it reassigns that spectrum primarily for 5G, he said. The country is on track to have 50% 5G coverage by the end of 2022, he said. Grewal said there's a particular need for low and midband spectrum for international mobile telecommunications (IMT).

France is harmonizing with the rest of Europe its use of the lower part of 6 GHz for Wi-Fi, said Eric Fournier, Agence Nationale des Frequences director-spectrum planning and international affairs. It's also setting up the regulatory framework for allowing 5G in the 26 GHz band, he said. Fournier said there's a big fight in Europe between Wi-Fi and IMT for access to the upper part of the band, and one concern with using it for IMT is protecting fixed satellite service uplinks. The European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations is studying the possibility of coexistence between Wi-Fi and other services including IMT, and Europe anticipates looking in 2024 at those study results alongside whatever comes out of WRC-23. With Europe having just authorized the lower 500 MHz of the band for Wi-Fi, it's feeling "no urgency" to make decisions about unlicensed use of the upper part of the band, he said.

The U.K.'s Ofcom is less optimistic about the prospects of high-power IMT use in the upper 6 GHz band because it might require clearing incumbents, said Director of Spectrum Analysis Martin Fenton. He said Ofcom is looking at what might be done indoors at low power in that portion of the band. Such an approach by the U.K. wouldn't preempt any WRC-23 decision but would be done in the meantime, he said.

Canada is moving toward more machine-based spectrum sharing using databases in bands such as 6 GHz, said Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada Communications Engineering Director Shalini Periyalwar. It's also looking at spectrum management tools for handling bands already licensed for mobile use, which could mean their use for wireless broadband in rural areas, she said. Canada plans to issue updated technician standards next year for very low-power devices, do an auction in 2023 for the C band's upper portion, and create a millimeter wave licensing framework to allow a 2024 auction, she said.

Brazil, having allocated the 6 GHz band in early 2021 to LANs, is looking next at out-of-band emission just below it, said National Telecommunications Agency Spectrum Manager Agostinho Linhares. The country's 5G spectrum auction last month -- including the 700 MHz, 2.3 GHz, 3.5 GHz and 26 GHz bands -- had winners commit to billions of dollars worth of conditions from investments in federal roads and providing 4G to various localities to running fiber backbones to others, he said.