By Claus Hetting, WiFi NOW CEO & Chairman
It is not often that African countries lead on spectrum regulation – but in this case, South Africa is on the cusp of taking a bold step towards better and more affordable connectivity. Wireless pioneer and WAPA* Executive Committee Member Paul Colmer says South African regulator ICASA’s approval of the lower 6 GHz band for standard power operation with AFC is imminent. “The decision is monumental and the rest of the world should learn from us,” Paul Colmer says.
South Africa is about to prove that leadership in spectrum regulation is not confined to Europe or North America. If things proceed as expected, South Africa telecom regulator ICASA will soon release the lower 6 GHz band to standard power operation with AFC, which means South Africa will be joining a visionary group of only a handful of countries across the globe. WAPA Executive Committee Member Paul Colmer describes the decision – expected to be written into law by the end of year – as the “single biggest and best thing that ICASA has done in its history.”
He says the process to get there has been arduous but recently accelerated through renewed fruitful cooperation with South Africa’s Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies Solly Malatsi as well as with the regulator ICASA. “We have a strong relationship with the current minister and regulator, and this is the best we have felt about those relationships in years. We now truly share a vision on how to make connectivity better and more affordable for all South Africans,” Paul Colmer says.
The AFC system needed to protect incumbent users of the lower 6 GHz band from undue interference (in this case mostly satellite operations) is already in place and has been successfully tested, he says. The AFC is currently provided by South Africa’s CSIR (Council of Scientific and Industrial Research) – a government body – although the provisioning of AFC services may later be released to private companies. CSIR’s AFC is currently based on OpenAFC, an open-source platform originally developed within Telecom Infra Project and today supported by a number of leading Wi-Fi organisations.
According to the new rules, licensed South Africa WISPs will need to register their radios and site details with the AFC database in order to receive channel allocations. Current AFC field trials are ongoing at two sites in KwaZulu-Natal province with support from ICASA, CSIR, and WAPA. The AFC lists the locations of incumbent satellite links and uses that data to determine whether a deployment can operate and what 6 GHz bands are available for operations, Paul Colmer says.
ICASA’s decision is likely to contribute strongly to the growth of affordable connectivity across South Africa – particularly as delivered by wireless ISPs. Mobile broadband remains the primary means of Internet access for many South Africans, but data costs can be prohibitive, particularly for users purchasing small prepaid bundles. Expanded use of licence-exempt spectrum could strengthen fixed wireless competition and improve broadband affordability. “This is a major regulatory shift in South Africa. It favours the rollout of affordable connectivity like we’ve not seen before. This is the blueprint for the rest of Africa and the world,” Paul Colmer says.
Is Europe the global laggard?
Ironically, it is Europe and not Africa that now risks becoming the global laggard on 6 GHz spectrum policy. Europe’s RSPG has recommended reserving the upper 6 GHz band for future mobile services -including the still hypothetical 6G ecosystem – instead of enabling technology that is ready to deploy today, although the recommendation (which is not yet binding) is being fiercely fought by Wi-Fi advocates (for more read our regulatory coverage in the newly launched WiFi NOW Resource Centre here).
In contrast, the standard power Wi-Fi ecosystem already exists. The equipment is certified, affordable, and ready to deploy today. South Africa has recognised this reality. Europe has not.
“We can basically start rolling out standard power 6 GHz connectivity as soon as the regulation is signed into law. All the equipment is ready, also from affordable vendors. This will be of huge importance to connectivity in South Africa and we can do this fast. It’s a landslide victory for businesses and consumers,” Paul Colmer says.
/Claus.
*WAPA: Wireless Access Providers Association of South Africa.
