LICENCE-EXEMPT ACCESS TO 6 GHz

IMT (4G, 5G) and Wi-Fi are complementary technologies that work together to meet citizens’ and businesses’ connectivity needs. Regulators should ensure each of these technologies has access to sufficient and appropriate spectrum. While IMT is designed to meet the connectivity needs of people moving around, Wi-Fi is designed to meet the connectivity needs of people within a single locality. The vast majority of internet traffic is generated and consumed by users that are located inside homes, offices and other buildings, and using Wi-Fi.

About 90% of internet traffic is carried by fixed lines in developed markets (see graph) [1] and the vast majority of this traffic is relayed to end-users via Wi-Fi.

As a result, the absolute volume of traffic handled by Wi-Fi is far greater than that handled by cellular technologies.

In developed markets, people tend to use fixed networks / Wi-Fi for productivity-related tasks, such as video conferences and exchanging large files, in the workplace and for watching television and movies or playing games on-demand in the home. Cellular networks, by contrast, are typically used by people on the move to check social media, watch short videos or exchange messages.

Despite the enormous growth in Wi-Fi traffic over the past two decades, no new mid-band spectrum was made available on a licence-exempt basis between 2003 and 2020. As a result, congestion has been increasing, impacting the end-user experience.

Many governments, including those of Argentina, Canada, Colombia, Peru, Saudi Arabia, South Korea and the U.S., have recognised the urgent need for licence-exempt access to the entire 6 GHz band (5925-7125 MHz), while others have taken the initial step of making part of the 6 GHz band available on a licence-exempt basis. Without sufficient spectrum for Wi-Fi, users will not be able to fully leverage the performance of gigabit fixed access networks, in particular fibre-to-the-home (FTTH), and advanced internet apps.

With access to the full 6 GHz band, Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 can support a variety of demanding use cases, such as UHD video streaming, augmented/virtual/extended reality (AR/VR/XR) applications, health monitoring, wearables and seamless roaming. 

Moreover, Wi-Fi is the only cost-effective option to distribute gigabit connectivity within schools and hospitals for eEducation and eHealth services. In some cases, 5G and Wi-Fi will work together to deliver an AR/VR/XR service, with the former providing the internet connectivity to a smartphone and the latter connecting the handset to the user’s headset. The two technologies can also work together to support other industrial and enterprise applications, such as factory robots and sensors, healthcare monitors, and wireless medical equipment.

If Wi-Fi were not available, IMT/5G networks would be more costly, as mobile operators would need to deploy many more small cells in dense urban areas to offer gigabit throughput and provide adequate quality of service, and this would be to mobile users only. To penetrate building walls, 5G services need to consume high levels of power. As a result, connecting an indoor device to an outdoor base station will use a disproportionate amount of energy, while also resulting in shorter recharge cycles, increased battery wear, and additional electronic waste. 

Providing 5G gigabit connectivity indoors would require the deployment of a completely new small cell infrastructure, parallel to the existing Wi-Fi one which would only provide marginal benefits and will be prohibitive from both a commercial and an environmental point of view.

[1] Source: ITU via Eurostat:

https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/isoc_tf/default/table?lang=en

https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/isoc_tmi/default/table?lang=en

Since the WRC-03 (2003) decision to enable access to new spectrum in the 5 GHz range, there have been revolutionary changes in Wi-Fi technology, use cases, and demand. Wi-Fi is now an absolutely critical link in the broadband connectivity chain – it has become essential to enable businesses and people to get online in urban, suburban and rural areas.

At the same time, the devices running on Wi-Fi networks have become increasingly powerful with each generation making greater demands on Wi-Fi network capacity from video resolution, processing power, camera capabilities and more.

With a technical architecture that is device-centric and not centrally managed, Wi-Fi has become ubiquitous, enabling it to benefit from enormous global economies of scale. Support for Wi-Fi at 6 GHz is set to be included in almost every phone, tablet and laptop, as well as other appliances, such as printers, televisions, cameras and wearables.

Global shipments of 6 GHz Wi-Fi devices will reach 2 billion in 2028, up from about 1 billion in 2025, according to ABI Research [1]

There is a need to make the full 1200 MHz in the 5925-7125 MHz (6 GHz) band available on a licence-exempt basis to support the ever-increasing demand and to support the universal fixed gigabit network coverage required by the EU’s Gigabit Infrastructure Act and the Digital Decade Policy Programme 2030[2]. In Europe, there are currently only five 160 MHz channels available for licence-exempt usage, meaning Wi-Fi can only support gigabit coverage to approximately 50-60% of residential building area, according to a study [3] by Plum Consulting. To ensure whole-building coverage, a minimum of ten channels is necessary. Therefore, Wi-Fi access to the 6425-7125 MHz is imperative to support current and future generations of Wi-Fi in Europe.

Opening only 480/500 MHz of the 6 GHz band would mean that Wi-Fi networks in dense deployments would have to continue employing small channel bandwidths, as only one 320 MHz channel or three 160 MHz channels would be available. With access to the full 1200 MHz, a larger number of these wide channels could be accommodated (see graphic), significantly improving the performance available to each user.

Wider channel bandwidths increase spectrum efficiency and deliver high-bandwidth applications and services while maintaining the ability to share spectrum with incumbents and other licence-exempt systems. A shortage of wider channels would have a detrimental impact on real-time video services and high-bandwidth immersive services, such as augmented reality, virtual reality, and extended reality (AR/VR/XR) services.

Enterprise use cases (in manufacturing, education, healthcare and other sectors) requiring different data rates, latencies, and quality of service within one deployment depend on the large number of channels and the diversity of channel widths (20/40/80/160 MHz) that become available with 1200 MHz of spectrum.

Wi-Fi 7 relies on access to 320 MHz channels to further improve latency, throughput, reliability and quality of service relative to Wi-Fi 6E.

[1] Source: Wi-Fi Innovation and Future Spectrum Allocation

[2] See Gigabit Infrastructure Act; see Europe’s Digital Decade Policy Programme

[3] Plum report, “Wi-Fi Spectrum Requirements”

Wi-Fi makes the internet affordable and accessible for citizens and businesses, helping to bridge the digital divide. Wi-Fi at 6 GHz boosts GDP growth by providing high performance access to broadband that makes the most of whatever backhaul connectivity solution is available.

As a licence-exempt and very versatile technology, Wi-Fi at 6 GHz serves as a platform for the creation of innovative business models and services (e.g. cloud-based systems), while expanding access to communication services for mobile, fixed networks and satellite networks through Wi-Fi hotspots.

As Wi-Fi allows multiple individuals to share a single broadband internet connection, the service becomes more affordable, thereby increasing internet penetration. In some cases, community Wi-Fi models can enable an individual subscription to support time- or data-bound service to potentially scores of users consuming small data bundles through a publicly accessible Wi-Fi access point.

A wide range of 6 GHz Wi-Fi equipment, compatible with the Wi-Fi 6E or Wi-Fi 7 standards, is now available. More than 5,000 Wi-Fi device models with support for 6 GHz operation were announced or made available between 2021-2024, according to Intel [1], which says the total number of 6 GHz device models nearly doubled in both 2023 and 2024. In 2024, the number of released Wi-Fi 7 devices reached more than 1,230 including more than 500 personal computing devices, 169 phones, and close to 550 gateways and APs. Of these Wi-Fi 7 devices, 77% support 6 GHz.

As the market grows, economies of scale are kicking in, ensuring that Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 will be highly affordable.

 As with previous generations of Wi-Fi, these new technologies are set to be included in almost every phone, tablet and laptop, as well as other appliances, such as printers, televisions, cameras and wearables. Grand View Research has forecast that the Wi-Fi 6/7 chipset market will grow rapidly. It projects that more than 7 billion Wi-Fi 6E chipsets and more than 3 billion Wi-Fi 7 chipsets will be shipped in 2030 globally [2].

In short, the Wi-Fi 6E/7 ecosystem is expanding fast. That buoyancy is underpinned by the Wi-Fi Alliance certification program, which ensures devices comply with the IEEE 802.11ax standard no matter where they are deployed. In simple terms, this certification ensures they will work and work well.

[1] Disclaimer: This data is compiled by Intel from vendor websites, press releases, and third-party device reviews. Intel provides this assessment for informational purposes only, does not guarantee its accuracy, and it is subject to change without notice.

[2] Grand View Research, Market Analysis Report

Successive WRCs have identified specific frequency bands for the deployment of IMT systems and this spectrum constitutes a good mix of ‘coverage’ bands (below 5 GHz) and capacity bands (mmWave spectrum above 24 GHz).

In all three ITU Regions, IMT has access to at least 1368 MHz of prime spectrum below 5 GHz – far more than is available for Wi-Fi.

More broadly, the growth of mobile data traffic is slowing worldwide, calling into question the notion that cellular networks need to be allocated yet more spectrum. Current trends suggest global mobile connections will be generating an average of approximately 40 GB per month by 2030 – far below the previous forecasts of 257 GB/month (ITU-R, 2015), according to one study [1].

The 3.8-4.2 GHz band should provide ample capacity to support local licences to cover those use cases that really need 5G.

As shown in the chart [2] below, the absolute annual increase in fixed traffic is much, much greater than the absolute increase in mobile traffic in most European countries.

Although the U.S. has made the entire 6 GHz band licence-exempt, the mobile network operators there have plenty of spectrum to meet demand for 5G. In summary, there is no need to also consider the 6 GHz band for IMT, particularly as the less favourable propagation characteristics make it less suitable for wide area coverage.

[1] Source: Reviewing wireless broadband technologies in the peak smartphone era: 6G versus Wi-Fi 7 and 8

[2] Source: ITU via Eurostat:

https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/isoc_tf/default/table?lang=en

https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/isoc_tmi/default/table?lang=en

IMT networks have access to more than enough mid-band spectrum, as discussed in the answer to question 5.  Adding support for IMT at 6 GHz in phones would introduce further costs.

Where necessary, mobile operators can offload 5G traffic to Wi-Fi, which is the most efficient and cost-effective technology for indoor connectivity.

Reserving a portion of the 6 GHz band for a later decision on whether to allow IMT (or not) would forego the immediate economic gains that would have accrued from opening the full 6 GHz band to licence-exempt operations.

Neither 5G nor 6G is likely to be deployed in the 6 GHz band in this decade. During that time, the global economy could forego the enormous economic value that could be generated by Wi-Fi.

UK regulator Ofcom [1] hopes to authorise low-power indoor Wi-Fi in the whole of the upper 6 GHz band as quickly as possible. It says doing so “will provide the greatest overall benefit to people and businesses in the UK … as Wi-Fi traffic continues to grow, and we see new innovations which rely on high data-rates enabled by larger channels, such as VR/AR use cases, access to additional spectrum will enable Wi-Fi to meet these new demands.”

Other regulators also believe that withholding the upper 700 MHz of the 6 GHz band for future consideration for IMT is inadvisable. ISED in Canada said such a move would “hinder access to affordable broadband services for Canadians in rural and urban areas and would negatively impact the opportunities for innovation.” In Saudi Arabia, the CITC has said that the 3 GHz band “will be sufficient to cover the mid-band spectrum needs of IMT for the foreseeable future. The existing mid-bands for exclusive IMT use have robust ecosystems already as well as superior propagation characteristics.”

Even in densely populated Hong Kong, an auction of parts of the upper 6 GHz band for IMT failed to sell all of the available spectrum with the bid prices only just surpassing the reserve price. On a price per MHz basis, the upper 6 GHz spectrum sold for just one tenth of the cost of the 2.3 GHz spectrum. According to PolicyTracker, Hutchison, one of Hong Kong’s four mobile operators, stated that it didn’t bid for the spectrum because of the lack of compatible terminal devices and infrastructure, the limited use of the band in other markets and regions, and the absence of viable use cases. With a FTTH (fibre-to-the-home) household penetration rate of almost 72%, Hong Kong’s residents can access the high-performance connectivity they need through a combination of Wi-Fi and FTTH. 

[1] Source: Ofcom consultation on the 6 GHz band, February 2025

WRC-23 confirmed that administrations have the flexibility to use the upper 6 GHz band as they see fit. While 6425-7125 MHz in Region 1 and 7025-7125 MHz in Region 3 were identified for IMT, the IMT identification recognises that the frequency bands are also used for WAS/RLANs. Moreover, the identification does not preclude the use of these frequency bands by any application of the services to which they are allocated (including Wi-Fi) and does not establish priority in the Radio Regulations.

Regional organisations now need to complete their own studies. CEPT, for example, is exploring whether the spectrum could be shared by Wi-Fi and IMT.

Yes, advances in technology are making it feasible for IMT and Wi-Fi to share this spectrum.

Automated frequency coordination (AFC) systems could be used to maximise efficient use of the 6425-7125 MHz band by both WAS/RLAN and IMT.

AFC systems can identify available frequencies for Wi-Fi devices based on device location, propagation conditions, and incumbent protection requirements. In this way, regulators can prioritise future mobile access in designated geographic areas or sub-bands, while still allowing opportunistic Wi-Fi use. 

The effectiveness of AFC systems has been proven in the field. In the U.S. and Canada, multiple AFC system providers manage access to the full 6 GHz band, while in the UK, Ofcom is proposing to use AFC systems to enable Wi-Fi to operate in a “mobile-prioritised portion” of the upper 6 GHz band, as well as to manage standard power device access to the lower 6 GHz band.

In the “mobile priority” portion of the band (6585-7125 MHz), Ofcom intends to award mobile licences in “high density areas” (such as urban centres) while implementing localised licensing arrangements, such as first-come-first-served, in other areas. In the meantime, Ofcom plans to use AFC systems to enable early access for Wi-Fi across the upper 6 GHz band and then be able to clear channels in locations where mobile deploys later.

Meanwhile, CEPT is evaluating the feasibility of enabling standard power WAS/RLAN (up to 4 W) in the lower 6 GHz band via AFC systems.

The theoretical peak spectral efficiencies of Wi-Fi 6 and 5G NR are essentially the same. In real world deployments, spectrum efficiency is chiefly determined by the network topology, rather than the underlying technology. In practice, most 5G networks, which are optimised for wide area coverage and have to balance several objectives, are unlikely to be as spectrally-efficient indoors as a Wi-Fi network optimised to support this use case. 

More broadly, licensing spectrum excludes most users and therefore undoubtedly reduces overall usage of the spectrum in question. In that sense, licensing spectrum reduces efficiency.

Tellingly, licence-exempt services are hugely popular with consumers, partly because they enable the end-user to decide how to connect to broadband in their homes or public spaces.

In most European countries, mobile traffic is just a small fraction of fixed-line traffic, yet mobile networks and Wi-Fi networks have access to similar amounts of spectrum. For example, in Spain there was ten times more fixed traffic than mobile traffic in 2024. As the vast majority of that fixed-line traffic reached end-users via Wi-Fi, the technology is making much more efficient use of the available spectrum than mobile.

The ITU-R Radio Regulations (Section 0.3) states that spectrum: “must be used rationally, efficiently and economically”, reflecting the fact that there are several important metrics with regard to the efficient use of spectrum, such as economic, or environmental impact, as well as pro-competitive benefits.

Both the availability and uptake of high-speed fixed broadband are growing quickly in most countries.

In Europe, 160 million homes subscribed to FTTH/B (fibre-to-the-home or building) services in September 2025, an increase of 23 million year-on-year, according to the FTTH Council for Europe (see chart). At the same time, 295 million homes across the EU 39 are now passed by FTTH/B networks, as telcos lay more fibre in the ground.

As things stand today, the end-user experience of Wi-Fi is far more likely to be determined by the local radio conditions and interference from other users, than the backhaul capacity. Spectrum congestion can also be a major issue in less densely populated residential areas where householders are increasingly using Wi-Fi to connect all kinds of devices from tablets and televisions to printers and music systems.

In short, there simply isn’t sufficient licence-exempt spectrum available to ensure users enjoy a good quality of service. Making the entire 6 GHz band available on a licence-exempt basis will alleviate this congestion.

Note that some Wi-Fi traffic will be entirely local in the sense that it will travel between two devices in the vicinity of each other – transmitting video images from a smartphone to a VR/AR headset, for example. For these use cases, there is no need for a high-speed fixed line.

Growth in FTTH/B Subscribers (millions)

If they have access to sufficient spectrum, both Wi-Fi and 5G equipment can provide a very high quality of service, both in terms of data rate and latency. The actual throughput will depend on the spectrum available and the level of congestion.

Wi-Fi 7, which is delivering significantly faster throughput and lower latency than previous generations of Wi-Fi, can outperform 5G, particularly in the uplink. At the end of 2024, median download speeds on Wi-Fi 7 in Spain reached 664 Mbps (see graphic), according to Ookla [1]. Median upload speeds on Wi-Fi 7, enhanced by features like multi-link operation (MLO), which enables simultaneous transmissions across multiple spectrum bands, reached 450 Mbps. Wi-Fi 7 also delivered a median latency of 19 ms, up to 12% lower than Wi-Fi 6.

In crowded spaces, Wi-Fi is likely to provide a better end-user experience: whereas cellular technologies have been designed to deliver outdoor coverage and mobility, Wi-Fi has been designed to deliver high local capacity predominantly indoors.

While there may be some very specific applications that could benefit from a licensing regime, the large majority of industrial applications, such as factory robots and sensors, augmented reality (AR), healthcare monitors and wireless medical equipment, can be realised with licence-exempt technologies, and specifically   Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7.

In order to use spectrum most efficiently, applications necessitating a licensed regime could instead utilise the 3.8-4.2 GHz band, which was made available for use by private and local networks and that is already supported by 5G.

Stringent QoS requirements that in the past might have justified the use of licensed technologies typically exist in enterprise environments where networks are carefully managed. Unlike previous generations of Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi 6/6E and Wi-Fi 7 are based on OFDMA technology and are thereby able to achieve very high QoS levels, particularly in managed networks. There are various other QoS-enhancing mechanisms and features, particularly in Wi-Fi 7, such as multi-link operation that will improve throughput by aggregating links, enhance reliability by transmitting multiple copies of the same frame in separated links, decrease channel access delay by selecting the first available link in terms of latency, and enable isolation of time-sensitive traffic from other network traffic.

Although there may be some use cases where 5G is required to support outdoor mobility and coverage, such deployments would not benefit from being able to use the 6 GHz band, which supports relatively limited signal propagation.

[1] Source: https://www.ookla.com/articles/spain-wifi-q1-2025

The first question to be answered is “What will 6G be”? Will it be a network of networks and not tied to a particular technology, or will it be just another ‘G’ (IMT-2030)?

Reserving spectrum for what may be the IMT ‘flavour’ of the future would undermine the objective to use spectrum as efficiently as possible. Moreover, existing IMT spectrum could be employed by 6G using dynamic spectrum sharing techniques (which allow the use of both 4G and 5G on the same spectrum).

Furthermore, propagation in the upper 6 GHz band is inferior to that in the 3.6 GHz band. Mobile operators would always use the band with the most favourable propagation characteristics to deploy their new network. This is what happened in Europe where 4G was deployed in the 1800 MHz band rather than in the 2600 MHz band.

The focus for 6G spectrum should be around bands that can be harmonised globally. The U.S., Canada, and many other countries have a large and growing number of fixed links in the upper 6 GHz band for important services beyond operator backhaul. There is no place to move these links. Some countries, such as Japan, have important broadcasting services that do not have a readily available alternative frequency.

IMT services in the upper 6 GHz band would also suffer from severe restrictions, according to ITU studies. Co-existence with incumbent services requires a stringent limitation of base station density, deploying the base stations below rooftop and deploying only in urban and suburban areas. Even if EMEA administrations were to remove all fixed links from the upper 6 GHz band, a costly and damaging process, they would still need to protect satellite services.

Finally, making the upper 6 GHz a priority band for 6G would prevent harmonisation and reduce economies of scale, as well as weaken alignment on a low-cost ecosystem. That would impact both end-users and innovators.

In summary, selecting the upper 6 GHz band as a 6G priority band would significantly and negatively impact 6G’s innovation potential.

In much of the Americas, Saudi Arabia and South Korea, Wi-Fi is successfully sharing the full 6 GHz band with incumbent services, such as satellite and fixed wireless links.

The European Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2021/1067 of 17 June 2021 established the regulatory conditions necessary for the operation of wireless services in the 5945-6425 MHz frequency band. The decision was taken following extensive technical studies which determined that low-power indoor and very low-power portable licence-exempt networks (e.g., Wi-Fi) can co-exist with incumbent satellite and fixed services.

Technical studies on the operation of 5G/IMT services in the upper 6 GHz band have shown that incumbents in the upper 6 GHz band will need similar levels of protection. Such requirements would allow licence-exempt networks (e.g., Wi-Fi) to operate in the band, but would make deployments of 5G/IMT networks commercially unviable.

The satellite industry is very concerned about potential interference from IMT services. The Global Satellite Operators Association (GSOA) has said[1]: “A geostationary satellite can “see” around one third of the earth surface and hence would receive interference from potentially millions of mobile base stations and terminals. Experience in some other frequency bands used by satellite uplinks, such as the 2.5 GHz band, has shown that IMT systems can cause interference to satellites that effectively prevent all satellite operations.”

Together, satellites and Wi-Fi bring connectivity to people and communities that are underserved by cellular and fixed-line networks. If the 6 GHz band is licence-exempt, Wi-Fi networks will be able to harness the spectrum to enable people in underserved areas to share the broadband connectivity delivered by satellites.

[1] Source: GSOA statement

Digital technologies and connectivity are playing a pivotal role in curbing greenhouse gas emissions, as well as humans’ broader impact on the environment. Connectivity can be used to capture real-time information that can be used to make all kinds of processes more efficient and less energy-intensive.

For example, digital connectivity can reduce the need to travel, by enabling people to fulfil tasks and conduct meetings remotely, rather than driving or flying. As it can deliver high-speed and very responsive connectivity, Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 are well suited to delivering high-resolution video streams and VR/AR services that can help people interact effectively without being physically present in the same location. Most of these applications will be used indoors, where Wi-Fi is the technology of choice. In outdoor scenarios, Wi-Fi will be widely used to connect smartphones to VR/AR headsets.

In cases where travel is necessary, on-board Wi-Fi can help make public transport more appealing, thereby reducing congestion and emissions caused by private cars.

At the same time, Wi-Fi is becoming more efficient, thanks to new features, such as target wake time and the OFDMA radio interface, which reduce power consumption. Most Wi-Fi networks operate at much lower power levels than cellular systems, so they could be the most energy-efficient connectivity option in many scenarios.

Indeed, the French regulator ARCEP found that the combination of fibre and Wi-Fi is the most efficient solution in terms of energy consumption, performance, and flexibility. Employing Wi-Fi, rather than IMT, in the 6 GHz band will require less power, helping to make better use of scarce energy resources. The ITU has estimated that mobile networks around the globe emitted 73.0 Mt CO₂ equivalent (CO₂e) in 2025, compared with 35.2 Mt CO₂e for fixed networks. Considering the share of mobile data and fixed broadband lines in Europe, around 4.8 Mt CO₂e will be emitted from fixed networks and 10 Mt CO₂e from mobile networks in the EU. That suggests fixed networks produce less than half the CO₂e of mobile networks, even though they transport more than ten times the amount of data.

Employing the 6 GHz band to enable outdoor base stations to deliver indoor connectivity would consume much more energy than using low-power Wi-Fi 6E, which is designed to provide connectivity indoors.