7/8 GHz Seen Emerging as a Top 6G Band in U.S.

The 7/8 GHz band will be a key band for 6G in the U.S., Veena Rawat, senior spectrum adviser to GSMA, predicted at the 6G Symposium on Tuesday (see 2409240032). An examination of additional bands for international mobile telecommunications was approved as an agenda item for the World Radiocommunication Conference in 2027, and 7/8 GHz is on the list, noted Rawat, who chaired the WRC in 2003. The reason for that agenda item is "the need for additional spectrum for 6G has been established,” she said. The 7/8 GHz band is “complex,” with government users, fixed satellites, meteorological satellites and other users. “Fixed you can work with,” she said, adding U.S. government users include DOD, NOAA and the FAA. Studies of 7/8 GHz are underway ahead of the WRC, Rawat said. “You need to know what your newcomer is, what are the characteristics of [the user], what are the parameters.” She added, “That’s the discussion we are having right now.” The studies will focus on protection of incumbents, not 6G, and the conditions under which the band can be shared, she said. Another band ITU is considering, with less promise, is 14.8-15.35 GHz, she said. “It’s good to discuss 14 GHz … but it’s kind of upper mid-band.” Rawat noted that the 600 MHz is being used for 5G worldwide, though not in the Americas, except in Mexico and Brazil. 7/8 GHz is among the bands the national spectrum strategy is studying and has been a top focus of carriers (see 2403120056). However you look at it, 7-24 GHz is “busy” in the U.S., said Tommaso Melodia, professor of electrical and computer engineering at Northeastern University. There is fixed wireless and fixed satellite, radiolocation services, radio astronomy and earth-exploration satellites use “and some of these services have pretty strict interference requirements,” he said. Open radio access networks and the ability to “observe” the network and use algorithmic controls will "potentially be an enabler for spectrum sharing.” ORAN can also enable sharing of information “between different systems, between even different technologies” and use increased data “to make decisions.”