The Trump regime has started to prepare the ground for 6G, issuing a memo about the spectrum it will reallocate and auction ahead of the next major cellular standard.
The administration said that it will reallocate federal systems currently using the 7.125-7.4 GHz band of spectrum “so it can be cleared for full-power commercial 6G use.” The government said that federal incumbents have 12 months to submit reallocation plans that protect national security while opening up this spectrum for American industry.
The memo also calls for immediate study of two other spectrum bands -- 2.69-2.9 GHz and 4.4-4.94 GHz -- as part of an effort to free up more spectrum for 6G use.
These spectrum moves appear to suggest that the administration doesn’t want to utilize the CBRS spectrum as part of that 6G wireless parcel. “By omission, it appears to protect the spectrum known as the Citizens Band Radio Services (CBRS) currently used by cable (and others) for wireless services,” noted New Street Research (NSR) in a note.
AT&T has previously suggested that it wanted to move the popular enterprise spectrum down from its 3.5 GHz perch into a lower 3 GHz range, which appeared to be supported by the Department of Defense in May this year. This could necessitate interruptions in spectrum access caused by transitioning to the 3.1-3.3 GHz band, commentators have noted.
Trump, 6G, and the LA Olympics
The Trump admin is trying to assert American leadership in 6G technology. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration has already started Mission LA 2028, which it calls an industry-led initiative to show off early 6G technology demos at the summer Olympics in 2028. Commercial deployment of 6G is expected to happen in 2030.
This is despite the fact that the U.S. has no major telecom equipment vendors domestically, and only one major 6G patent holder in Qualcomm. So - other than Qualcomm and possibly Nvidia - exactly which domestic vendors could even assert a 6G lead remains to be seen.