6GHz Wi-Fi: Tech Firms Urge India to Delicense, Avoid Huge Losses

Tech Industry Plea for 6GHz Wi-Fi Delicensing

Modern technology companies have actually made a fresh pitch to the telecommunications ministry to reevaluate its choice to auction the 6GHz Wi-fi band (5925– 7125 MHz) to telecommunications drivers, stating hold-ups in delicensing these airwaves is creating a yearly loss of Rs 12.7 lakh crore to the Indian exchequer.

GSMA Supports 6GHz Spectrum Auction

The government decision was quickly complied with by worldwide mobile network standards body GSMA, in February, calling on the Division of Telecommunications to consist of 6GHz regularity in the next spectrum public auctions.

BIF Calls for Immediate Action on 6GHz Band

Calling the move a “non-negotiable national top priority”, BIF advised the government to promptly open at the very least 660 MHz, comparable to Australia’s strategy, to permit two synchronised 320 MHz networks, a technical need for high-throughput applications.

The latest initiative by technology firms comes a couple of months after the government, in January, said it had made a decision to auction 6GHz spectrum to telcos, as opposed to making it available for unlicensed usage by technology business. Unlicensed spectrum can be assigned without auction.

“More than 84 countries have already opened up component or every one of the 6 GHz band. India dangers falling behind,” BIF said, pointing out that routers and consumer devices such as Wi-Fi 6E/7 devices and AR/VR headsets already support the band around the world however remain underutilised locally because of policy inertia.

Economic Benefits of Delicensing 6 GHz Band

According to an independent economic research by Columbia College’s Raúl L. Katz commissioned by the Dynamic Range Alliance, the collective economic worth of delicensing the 6 GHz band is estimated to be $4.03 trillion (Rs 34.25 lakh crore).

It said that greater than 80% of internet data in India is consumed indoors where 5G in the 3.5 GHz band encounters issues such as decrease in signal strength and, as a result, Wi-Fi 6E/7 in the 6 GHz band is the only scalable, economical solution.