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European Commission publishes study by LS telcom on spectrum assignment in the EU with a view to future 5G services

London, UK, Lichtenau/Baden, Germany, 23rd October 2017 – LS telcom today announces the publication by the European Commission of the “Study on Spectrum Assignment in the European Union”. The report, written by LS telcom together with PolicyTracker and VVA, examines the approaches used by EU Member States for authorizing and assigning spectrum with a view to determining which methods might be most appropriate in the context of future 5G services and the development of industrial sectors, so called vertical markets, in the European Union.

“This study will inform regulators, operators and service providers of electronic communications of the benefits from adopting alternative approaches to spectrum authorisation and assignment. These approaches could unlock access to different services using 5G technologies that may otherwise have been delayed. More flexible use of these approaches improves spectrum efficiency and ultimately improves access to connectivity for enterprises and consumers,” reports Saul Friedner, Associate Director, Spectrum Services at LS telcom.

According to the study, the spectrum access requirements of the ‘vertical’ services, which have specific technical and performance characteristics, differ widely from the requirements of mobile services, and are driving the way in which spectrum will be used, and the associated regime under which it should be authorized and assigned. The study found that assignment approaches should be harmonized across Member States, especially for higher frequency bands (e.g. 26 GHz), and appropriately sized blocks considered, when authorizing spectrum for different services.

“The findings of the study will provide additional elements in the context of the ongoing negotiations with the European Parliament and the Council on the Commission Proposal for a ‘European Electronic Communications Code’ (EECC). The study will be further exploited in the context of the implementation of the Commission 5G Action Plan,” as indicated in the EU press release.