Spectrum above 6 GHz for future mobile communications

  • Start: 16 January 2015
  • Status: Closed
  • End: 27 February 2015

This document asks for stakeholder input on spectrum bands above 6 GHz that might be suitable for future mobile communication services, often referred to as 5G (the 5th generation of mobile services).

The exact nature of 5G is not yet defined, but to lay the foundations for its future introduction we need to understand how it might use spectrum. 5G is likely to provide much faster mobile broadband speeds than the current generation of mobile technology (4G), and the use of large blocks of spectrum is likely to be important to achieve the fastest speeds. Ofcom has already identified possible bands below 6 GHz for future mobile services, including 5G, as part our Mobile Data Strategy, but large blocks of spectrum are difficult to find at lower frequencies. Therefore higher frequency bands, e.g. above 6 GHz, are also likely to be important. However, those bands are already used by a wide range of services that benefit citizens and consumers.

This Call for Input will help us better understand the advantages and disadvantages of different bands above 6 GHz, taking account of other existing and potential users of that spectrum. The information provided will, along with our ongoing work on 5G and demand for other uses of spectrum, inform our strategy on bands above 6 GHz. This includes our input to international discussions on bands above 6 GHz that could be considered at the World Radiocommunications Conference (WRC) in 2019.

Ofcom will publish a summary of the responses to this Call for Input and an update on next steps in Q2 2015.


Main documents

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Responses

Responder name Type
Airbus_Response.pdf (PDF File, 103.1 KB) Organisation
Alcatel-Lucent_Response.pdf (PDF File, 185.6 KB) Organisation
Angie_Response.pdf (PDF File, 297.5 KB) Organisation
BBC_Response.pdf (PDF File, 100.9 KB) Organisation
BT_response.pdf (PDF File, 396.9 KB) Organisation
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