The U.S. and nine international partners endorsed shared principles for developing 6G wireless communications. These include R&D, and the countries say they recognize that by working together they can support open, free, global, interoperable, reliable, resilient and secure connectivity.
“We believe this to be an indispensable contribution towards building a more inclusive, sustainable, secure, and peaceful future for all, and call upon other governments, organizations, and stakeholders to join us in supporting and upholding these principles,” says the White House, joined by Australia, Canada, the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
The principles were released as a battle is underway to influence 6G standards amid concerns by Western countries that authoritarian regimes could gain further control over the internet in these countries, reports Axios. They laid out principles including using systematic approaches to cybersecurity, being protective of privacy and creating technologies that are widely available and accessible to developing nations.
“Collaboration and unity are key to resolving pressing challenges in the development of 6G, and we hereby declare our intention to adopt relevant policies to this end in our countries, to encourage the adoption of such policies in third countries, and to advance research and development and standardization of 6G networks that fulfill the shared principles,” they state.
“China views telecommunications as central to its geopolitical and strategic objectives,” per analysis from the Center for a New American Security, a D.C. think tank. “China aims to dominate the development and rollout of 6G infrastructure, just as it did in 5G, where Chinese firms maintain 70 percent of the world’s base stations and 80 percent of 5G connected devices,” it says, according to Axios.
By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief
Reader Interactions