Asia-Pacific telecommunity to meet in August on 6GHz band

A key meeting of the Asia Pacific Telecommunity (APT) is scheduled next month in Brisbane to decide future deployment of the 6 GHz spectrum band for 5G services in India.

The meeting, around mid-August, aims to build momentum to drive all Region 3 nations (including India) to collectively push for using the 6 GHz spectrum band for cost-effective rollout of 5G services, in the run-up to the World Radio Communications-2023 conference in Dubai in December, where a final decision will be taken.

The APT is an inter-governmental body founded by the ITU and United Nations Economic & Social Commission for Asia & the Pacific (UNESCAP) to drive ICT policy and regulatory coordination in the Asia-Pacific region.

A key meeting of the Asia Pacific Telecommunity (APT) is scheduled next month in Brisbane to decide future deployment of the 6 GHz spectrum band for 5G services in India.

Key Region 3 member nations are India, China, South Korea, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, and New Zealand.

China recently allocated the 6 GHz band for 5G services and the upcoming APT meeting comes at a time when top telcos and tech companies in India are engaged in a fierce duel to corner these airwaves.

Tech companies such as Google, Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, Cisco, Qualcomm, Intel and Netflix want the 6 GHz spectrum band - that offer internet speeds up to 10 Gbps - delicensed to boost affordable broadband penetration across rural India via the WiFi route.

But India's top telcos - Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea - want this band auctioned and made available fully for 5G services now and for 6G in future.

The 6 GHz spectrum band ranges from 5925-to-7125 MHz (or 1200 units). "The APG, a group within the APT, is meeting next month in Brisbane to align all major Region 3 wireless/spectrum matters, such as the 6 GHz band deployment for 5G services, and present a common proposal at the WRC-2023 conference in December," a senior telecom industry executive told ET.

He added that many Region 3 countries are awaiting India's position at the upcoming APG meeting and counting on its support for deploying the 6 GHz band for 5G services, especially after China recently allocated the band for 5G. "This will pave the way for harmonising the 6 GHz band and creating a cost-efficient 5G devices/network ecosystem centred around these airwaves."

Last month, the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) told the DoT that 6 GHz is the only mid-band spectrum range where a contiguous bandwidth of 300-400 units per telco was possible to address evolving demands towards 2030.