A New Paradigm: Mid-Band, Sharing-Native 6G

The 6G juggernaut has started rolling, mostly propelled by standardization bodies and equipment manufacturers, even as significant concerns remain about the success of 5G, use cases that “need” 6G and, most importantly, spectrum availability for the continued expansion of wireless connectivity. Based on insights derived from extensive past research on measurements and analyses of real-world deployed 5G networks in licensed mid-band (2.5 - 3.98 GHz) and mmWave (> 24 GHz), 4G/5G in the shared Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) band, as well as sharing studies between Wi-Fi and incumbent users in the unlicensed 6 GHz band, this paper offers an alternate vision for how next generation cellular networks need to change in order to address the actual needs of wireless connectivity today. Demands on throughput are increasing, but much of this emanates from indoor usage, while the cellular architecture of today does not differentiate between indoor and outdoor usage. Our conclusion is that 6G bandwidth needs in the mid-bands are better served by developing protocols that allow cellular networks to operate in shared spectrum as effectively as in exclusively licensed spectrum: this will improve indoor coverage since it may be easier to access additional spectrum on a low-power, shared basis rather than exclusive, high-power use.