6G isn't even here yet but mobile industry wants triple the spectrum

The GSMA says 6G networks will need up to three times the spectrum currently allocated to mobile operators to meet anticipated demands for data. In a newly published report, Vision 2040: Spectrum for the Future of Mobile Connectivity [PDF], the organization claims that cell networks in densely populated urban areas will be …

[A Non e-mouse]

Their problem is going to be that as they go up the spectrum to get more bandwidth, propogation & penetration drop off.

[Dan 55]

This is where VoWiFi comes in. If it worked reliably...

[jonfr400]

VoWiFi is reliable

In my experience the VoWiFi has been reliable. Your WiFi spectrum might not be reliable because of local noise or interference from none WiFi usage on the spectrum that you are using.

[Dan 55]

Re: VoWiFi is reliable

If it were something in my control like my WiFi... but other people's VoWiFi will work on my WiFi network, and other people's SIMs will work on my phone and allow VoWiFi, but my combination of phone and network doesn't work.

[DS999]

Yes I've been wondering what the heck they think the use case will be for cellular that requires direct line of sight at all times - it would be blocked by leaves in a tree, or a person's hand, let alone being unusable inside a building or vehicle.

It isn't going to be for the ridiculous use cases I see posited for 6G like AR glasses, because you turn your head and you've blocked the signal. Do they envision cellular companies installing so many microsites that you'll have line of sight wherever you go. They are already finding profitability a concern which has led them to slow down the pace of new tower builds. Other than maybe a few showcase cities like Seoul, 6G is never going to happen in the way they're claiming.

[Mage]

Solution

One wholesale RAN for all the Mobile spectrum. Approximately doubles capacity without adding any masts.

Also what happened to the idea of Cellular? More masts and turn the power down!

They are massively wasting the spectrum they have.

[snowpages]

And all this will be used for..

AI-generated cat videos.

We are indeed doomed.

G

[Anonymous Coward]

5G?

Did we ever see all the much promised advantages of 5G?

[MrMerrymaker]

Re: 5G?

Yep I can confirm my mobile download speeds are great compared to 4g

[DaveLS]

Re: 5G?

Nth-generation mobile is all about delivering on the promises of generation N–1, and making new promises to be delivered by generation N+1.

If we're lucky.

[O'Reg Inalsin]

Re: 5G?

ATT stopped service to my 4G phone (obsolete by decree) so I had to get a new one that was 5G capable. Mission completed?

What they really want is to replace internet+Wifi with 5G to every device in the home/office/factory, despite it being multiple times as expensive, and many times harder (if not impossible) to block the ads and privacy invasion.

[Cav]

Re: 5G?

That makes no sense. WIFI is just the method of delivery. The content structure stays the same.

[toejam++]

Re: 5G?

Your phone was likely an older model that supported data over LTE but not voice over LTE. That meant that it had to rely on some 2G or 3G voice network to make calls. When AT&T turned off all of that old kit and reallocated the bands for LTE and 5G-NR coverage, your phone was rendered useless.

Meanwhile, I recently had to pull such a phone (Galaxy S5) out of a desk drawer while my newer phone was down for repair. I use T-Mobile, which still operates a sliver of 2G GSM/EDGE coverage for legacy applications like home security systems with old modems. When I fired up my GS5, that's what it connected to. It was painfully slow and the coverage sucked, but it was only for a week.

[vtcodger]

Re: 5G?

Did we ever see all the much promised advantages of 5G

Why yes. In my case, since they turned of 2G, I no longer need to worry about how many bars I have. The answer is, to a high degree of certainty, zero (0).

[nobody who matters]

Re: 5G?

Some people are still waiting for a reliable 5G signal to arrive, let alone worrying as to whether they are getting any advantages from it.

[MrMerrymaker]

in before

Insane conspiracy losers think 6g is some kind of mind control vector or other shit

As if that level of government competence exists!

[MrMerrymaker]

Re: in before

One down voter believes in bullshit

[Paul Crawford]

7.125-8.4 GHz range

The 7.125-8.4 GHz range is used world-wide by satellite operators for metrological and other data transfers, given the congested and fairly narrow S-band segment for TTC is so full. There would be no sane way to coordinate mobile use of that and not risk serious interference with ground stations from both land based use and folks not filling their mobiles on a plane, etc.

[jonfr400]

Outside of cities there is no use for large spectrum for 4G and 5G

Outside of cities, there is not much use for this much spectrum. This is country specific. More dense countries require maybe more spectrum, even in rural areas. However. I don't think they require this much spectrum. They are overestimating the usage of 6G by a factor of 100, even more in my view. For less populated countries. Like those in the Nordic region (where I am from). None of this high frequency spectrum is going to get used. They currently barley use the n77, n78 in many parts of those countries. For both 4G and 5G, usage in band 8, band 20, band 28. Depending on the licence that the mobile network has.

Here is all the spectrum that has been allocated for 4G and 5G. As they turn off 4G with time, along with 5G. All that spectrum is going to be free for 6G when that time arrives. Currently, old 2G and 3G services are being turned off in the Nordic countries. Plans are not the same between countries.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LTE_frequency_bands

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/5G_NR_frequency_bands

[toejam++]

Re: Outside of cities there is no use for large spectrum for 4G and 5G

Actually, the 3.5, 3.8, and 5 GHz GHz bands are/were sometimes used by WISPs for fixed point-to-multipoint networks. If you can get a directional antenna above the roofline, you might be able to get a few kilometers of range.

Keep in mind that major cellular providers are really pushing for home wireless internet. And they're not above elbowing out the little independent providers who used the 3.5 and 3.8 GHz bands in the past.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Outside of cities there is no use for large spectrum for 4G and 5G

> If you can get a directional antenna above the roofline, you might be able to get a few kilometers of range.

Near-gigabit, closing on ranges of ~100km with the right equipment. Multi-hundred-megabit at 50km with a ~1m dish is nearly trivial to achieve.

And that's *before* you start spending Real Money (TM) on premium radios. You'll spend far more renting space on a tower.

[Eecahmap]

Modulation methods

Instead of gobbling up more spectrum, they should be required to put some of their juicy profits into improving the bit density of their signals, and not tie up those new methods in onerous patents.

[David Hicklin]

This is the equivalent of 360 GB per mobile user per month, the GSMA says.

WTF ?? That is an insane assessment

On the other hand they do include autonomous vehicles is their assessment which I suspect slurp and send a shedload of data. But needing that much bandwidth (and the backend to go with it) pretty much limits autonomous vehicles to niche uses (hopefully).

AI is an illusion as it will have died back by then.

[jonfr400]

Re: This is the equivalent of 360 GB per mobile user per month, the GSMA says.

I wonder where they get that number from. I am can be heavy user and I am no where near 360GB if I have a fixed internet connection. If I only have 4G internet (sometimes happens). The usage can quickly go well over 500GB.

It is possible that they are basing their data on users that have only their internet over 4G and 5G and do not have access to fixed internet (VDSL, fibre).

[Anonymous Coward]

Spectrum Must be Shared

Over the past decade, time has shown that the mobile industry (carriers) has consistently adopted a "sky is falling" approach to spectrum. Yet they already have huge allocations of spectrum in the US and abroad, and by Federal law (OBBBA) will get access to even more if they choose to participate in the auctions. Several providers have even purchased more spectrum from Echostar. Believe it or not, there are other uses than what the carriers provide that also need and will need spectrum. And they are good for the nation and world. 6G is not a "carrier only" approach. It is meant to expand capabilities to incorporate AI/ML and edge and RAN based computational approaches, which should be more efficient. Always yelling out, give me more, we need more for very few companies does not promote competition, does not promote R&D, does not promote diversity of uses, and much more. Spectrum is a limited resource; it should not all go in one direction, and better yet for the future, it must be shared.