Are you up to speed on 4G? Try our quiz!
The European Commission (EC) has called on member states to plan the reassignment of 700MHz frequencies for mobile broadband by 2020 to help accommodate growing demand for data, cross-border application and the arrival of 5G networks.
The proposals would require all 28 members of the EU to make their plans public by 30 June 2017 and release the airwaves by the same date in 2020. France and Germany have already authorised the use of 700MHz for mobile, while Denmark, Finland, Sweden and the UK are in the process.
Many countries use the band for digital terrestrial television (DTT) services, but the EC has promised safeguards for traditional broadcasts, with UHF spectrum located between 470 and 694 MHz prioritised for audiovisual transmissions. The EC does want a long-term “flexible” approach for these bands however.
“Twenty-eight different approaches to manage radio frequencies in the EU do not make economic sense in the Digital Single Market,” said Andrus Ansip, vice president for the digital single market. “Today we come with our first proposal on how to better coordinate spectrum in the EU. We propose a joint approach to use the 700 MHz band for mobile services. This band is the sweet spot for both wide coverage and high speeds.
“It will give top-quality internet access to all Europeans, even in rural areas, and pave the way for 5G, the next generation of communication network. At the same time, we secure frequencies for the audiovisual sector and boost the development of technologies which make an efficient use of radio waves. Spectrum is a scarce resource: we need to make the best of it.”
The UN-affiliated International Telecommunications Union (ITU) has already allocated 700MHz for mobile broadband use on a global scale at the World Radiocommunications Conference (WRC-15) last year.
Are you up to speed on 4G? Try our quiz!
AI push sees Alphabet's Google saying it will consolidate its AI teams in its Research…
Beijing orders Apple to pull Meta's WhatsApp and Threads from its Chinese App Store over…
Key milestone sees Intel Foundry assemble ASML's new “High NA EUV” lithography tool, to begin…
Oracle's huge AI, Cloud investment in Japan will meet growing local demand and address digital…
People who create sexually explicit ‘deepfakes’ of adults will face prosecution under a new law…
Protest at cloud contract with Israel results in staff firings, in addition to layoffs of…