ACMA said that the draft spectrum outlook also looks at potential future use of the upper 6 GHz frequency band

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) unveiled its draft plan for the management of Australia’s spectrum in the coming years.

In a release, ACMA noted that the draft five-year spectrum outlook 2024–29 stipulates a range of potential use cases, including increasing the spectrum available for 5G wireless broadband as well as new satellite technologies.

ACMA authority member and spectrum lead Adam Suckling said the entity was now calling on stakeholders to give their thoughts on the draft plan. “Spectrum management isn’t discussed a lot in Australia but it plays an enormous role in our everyday lives,” Suckling said. “Without knowing it, each and every day Australians use spectrum for everything from watching TV to using their mobiles and accessing the internet. Spectrum also supports the most critical infrastructure that drives business and our national economy, so it’s incredibly important we consult as widely as possible on its future use.”

The draft spectrum outlook also looks at potential future use of the upper 6 GHz frequency band, ACMA said.

“Internationally, the upper 6 GHz band is growing in importance for both 5G as well as the next generation of Wi-Fi technology, with strong and divergent views on the best use of the band. Accordingly, we are moving to the preliminary planning stagecome to a decision on the future use of this band,” Suckling said.

He added that the ACMA will also complete its program of allocations of important 3.4-4.0 GHz spectrum, which have been designed to accommodate a range of users and use cases. Applications for area-wide licenses in the 3.8 GHz band of this spectrum will open shortly, he said.

“Spectrum licenses in this band allow organizations to build their own private communications networks to support their business needs. We have already seen an uptake of private networks by the construction and mining sectors and are starting to see other sectors showing an interest as well, such as agriculture, transport and utilities businesses. We anticipate this trend will continue, with increasing demand for private networks using 5G technology,” Suckling added.

The ACMA said that consultation submissions for this draft spectrum auction will end on April 22.