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CTIA Raises Alert as China Dedicates 6 GHz Spectrum to 5G

CTIA raised concerns Wednesday as China announced it was allocating the top half of the 6 GHz band to 5G. In the U.S., the FCC assigned the entire band to Wi-Fi and other unlicensed use in 2020 (see 2004230059). “BREAKING…

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NEWS: China announces plans to free up far more #5G spectrum than the United States,” CTIA tweeted: “Congress must restore @FCC auction authority and identify new spectrum to secure our leadership of the industries and innovations of the future.” The 6 GHz band “is the largest remaining single block of mid-band spectrum that can be assigned to licensed mobile in the foreseeable future,” Luciana Camargos, GSMA head-spectrum, blogged Wednesday, noting the latest from China. “It can help 5G to play a central role in sustainable social and industrial development,” Camargos said: “As enhanced broadband, IoT, data, analytics, and insight permeate every aspect of society, mobile networks require a long-term vision of each nation’s future.” The development is “a big step” toward a “commercial 6 GHz 5G ecosystem,” she said. Comargos noted China is deploying the world’s largest 5G network, with more than 2.7 million base stations by the end of April, “on track to become the first country to reach 1 billion 5G connections in 2025.” Future use of the band is likely to be an issue at the World Radiocommunication Conference in November (see 2302060052).