The government of South Korea said the 6G plan also involves the development of technologies for the upper-mid band
South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT unveiled its KRW440.4 billion ($324.5 million) research and development plan for future 6G networks, local news agency Yonhap reported.
The ministry noted that the plan includes developing technologies related to wireless communications, mobile core networks, 6G wired networks, 6G systems and the standardization of 6G.
The ministry also said it will work to standardize the locally-developed 6G technologies in line with the international standardization requirements, which are expected to start being established as early as next year, the report stated.
South Korea’s 6G plan also involves the development of technologies for the upper-mid band, which covers the frequency range of 7 GHz to 24 GHz, to advance the 5G network service.
The ministry also aims to showcase the intermediate outcome of its 6G network development in 2026 to play a leading role in setting the international standards for the next-generation network service, the report added.
In February, the Korean government said it planned to commercialize an initial 6G network service in 2028, two years earlier than its initial schedule.
The government had also announced its K-Network 2030 strategy, with the aim of boosting private-public cooperation to develop 6G technologies, innovate around software-based next-generation mobile networks and strengthen the network supply chain.
The ministry previously launched a feasibility study for research and development on core 6G technologies for a total of KRW 625.3 billion to locally produce materials, components and equipment related to future 6G network.
The ministry also said that it has decided to advance the launch of the 6G service, because it believes the country cannot achieve industrial innovation without having a global competitive edge in the 6G field.
Korean telco SK Telecom recently released a 6G white paper that focuses on the key requirements for 6G standardization and the telco’s views regarding the direction of future network evolution.
The standardization process for future 6G systems is in its early stages. In June 2023, the International Telecommunication Union-Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R) Working Party (WP) 5D published the framework recommendation of 6G networks, which are expected to be commercialized around 2030. In addition, the first discussion on 6G candidate frequencies is scheduled to take place at the World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC) at the end of this year. Meanwhile, the WP 5D is expected to begin working on the technical performance requirements of 6G from 2024.
The Korean carrier said the new white paper contains its views on 6G key requirements and 6G evolution methodology, along with its opinions on the latest trends in frequency standardization. The 6G white paper also provides analysis, development directions and methodologies pertaining to promising 6G use cases, technology trends as well as and candidate frequencies.
SK Telecom highlighted that some of the 6G key requirements include “powerful” 6G products and services, simple architecture options, technologies that can expand coverage and device heat and power consumption reduction technologies to improve user experience.
