On April 24, 2020 — almost a year ago — the FCC met the moment during a time of crisis and officially opened up the 6 GHz band to Wi-Fi and other unlicensed uses. This move by the FCC unleashed the full potential of Wi-Fi capabilities by freeing up previously underused spectrum and ushering in next-generation technologies like Wi-Fi 6E.
The FCC’s decision proved to be the first domino to fall in what would ultimately become a global movement to modernize the 6 GHz band and bring better connectivity to users across the world.
Most recently, this week Saudi Arabia announced that they would become the first country in the Middle East, Europe or Africa to designate all 1,200 MHz of the 6 GHz band to unlicensed use. This decision by the Saudis will improve connectivity speeds across the country, improve capacity and will clear the way for the adoption of technology like Wi-Fi 6E and, ultimately, Wi-Fi 7.
Last week, Qatar’s Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA) took the first steps to assign spectrum needed to develop Wi-Fi 6 technologies in the country. The regulators who made the decision cited the potential of advancing AR/VR technology, the Internet of Things (IoT), Ultra High Definition technologies and beyond.
This has been a global movement. In November of 2020, Canada began consultation to open up the 6 GHz band to support greater choice and affordability for all Canadians. In October, South Korea approved 1.2 GHz of the 6 GHz band for unlicensed use, which will lead to download speeds of 2.1 Gbps, per technology officials in the nation.
In addition, Chile, Brazil and other nations have taken action to modernize the 6 GHz band and bring their communications infrastructure into the 21st century.
With the 6 GHz band being used in innovative ways across the world, it is an exciting time for the global telecom landscape. With this in mind, the FCC deserves credit for taking the trailblazing steps to modernize the band at the onset of the pandemic.