Podcast: How do mobile standards bodies choose which spectrum bands to include in 5G?

In late 2022, 3GPP3GPP stands for the Third Generation Partn… completed its standardisation work for the highly contested upper 6 GHz band. This was welcomed by the mobile industry, which viewed it as a step towards assigning the band for mobile.

Yet nearly four years later, the upper 6 GHz band has only been assigned in one territory (Hong Kong) and remains on the roadmap in only a handful of other countries.

So why did 3GPP feel the need to include the band in its standards so early on?

In the latest episode of our podcast, we speak to 3GPP veteran Howard Benn about how the group works and how it intersects with spectrum policymaking.

Benn explains that 3GPP is largely driven by its members, who prefer to be prepared in case a band becomes available.

He also notes that this is not the first time that 3GPP has been “ahead” of regulations. In 2001, when 3GPP was considering adding the 1800 MHz band to the standard, there was pushback from regulators and the ITUThe International Telecommunication U…, who said they hadn’t yet developed the regulations for the standard.

The podcast also touches on the challenges facing 3GPP, whether there will be a standards split in 6G and why it’s difficult to remove features from the standard.

Listen to the full conversation below. You can also find it on all major podcast platforms.