September 18, 2026 | TECH WATCH | by Claus Hetting, WiFi NOW CEO & Chairman
Is Europe putting its Wi-Fi future at risk by continuing to hold back the upper 6 GHz band? Wi-Fi Alliance VP of Regulatory Affairs Alex Roytblat says the cost of waiting is already mounting. He points to lost innovation, a potential Wi-Fi bottleneck on Europe’s massive broadband investments, inefficient use of valuable spectrum, and questions over the economics of reserving the band for future mobile services. Meanwhile, the UK is moving ahead with a spectrum-sharing model that could offer Europe another way forward.
Europe’s long-running debate over the future of the upper 6 GHz band is no longer simply a question of which technology should ultimately receive access to the spectrum. According to Wi-Fi Alliance VP of Regulatory Affairs Alex Roytblat, Europe is already incurring a cost by leaving the question unresolved.
Speaking to WiFi NOW on Tech Watch, Alex Roytblat said his concern was triggered by a conversation with a European Commission official who argued that Europe was in a strong position precisely because it had not yet committed the upper 6 GHz band. Alex Roytblat sees it differently.
“What is the cost for Europe of waiting and holding back?” he asks in the interview. His answer falls into several categories: innovation, investment, spectrum efficiency, and European competitiveness.
Wi-Fi 7 is here – but Europe cannot use all of it
The immediate issue is that advanced Wi-Fi technology capable of using the full 6 GHz band already exists. But European Wi-Fi devices cannot currently access the upper 6 GHz frequencies from 6425–7125 MHz. Alex Roytblat argues that this restricts the potential of Wi-Fi 7 and future Wi-Fi generations precisely when increasingly demanding applications are emerging.
He also points to the predominantly indoor nature of Wi-Fi consumption: Cloud applications, AI services, immersive applications, enterprise connectivity, and much of everyday broadband usage happen inside homes, offices, and other buildings. In his view, this makes Wi-Fi particularly important as the final wireless connection between Europe’s broadband infrastructure and users and devices.
The argument becomes particularly significant when viewed against the EU’s own Digital Decade objectives. Europe is investing heavily in fibre and other high-capacity broadband infrastructure, but Alex Roytblat argues that much of the benefit ultimately reaches users through Wi-Fi rather than through a wired connection directly to their devices. If Wi-Fi does not have sufficient spectrum, he says, the wireless connection inside the building risks becoming the bottleneck. Alex Roytblat compares it to “delivering the plumbing to the building, but not having any faucets.”
Is Europe reserving spectrum that may sit unused for years?
Perhaps the most contentious part of the argument concerns the possibility that upper 6 GHz spectrum could ultimately be used for future mobile networks, including 6G. Alex Roytblat questions the economic logic of effectively holding the spectrum while Europe waits for future mobile requirements to become clear. In the interview, he argues that policymakers could wait another five to seven years before prospective mobile use materialises – after which operators would still need additional time to deploy networks.
In his description, this could effectively become a decade-long spectrum reservation while Wi-Fi equipment capable of using the frequencies already exists today. There is another question: Would European mobile operators actually have a compelling business case for deploying extensively in the band? He points to pressure on mobile operator economics and the additional expenditure that new spectrum could entail, including spectrum acquisition, equipment and network densification.
He stresses that Wi-Fi Alliance does not regard Wi-Fi and mobile as opposing technologies – he describes them as complementary – but questions whether reserving upper 6 GHz for future mobile deployment represents the most productive use of the spectrum.
The UK is choosing another route
There is now an important European counterexample: the UK. Alex Roytblat highlights the UK regulator Ofcom’s decision to enable Wi-Fi to operate in upper 6 GHz on what he describes as a “non-prioritised basis.”
Under the approach described by Roytblat, Wi-Fi could make use of the spectrum before mobile networks arrive. Dynamic spectrum-management mechanisms such as Automated Frequency Coordination could subsequently restrict Wi-Fi access in particular locations if and when mobile operators deploy there. The result could be a very different model from leaving the spectrum unused while waiting for future mobile demand.
“If a mobile network decides to deploy in one particular area, let’s say downtown London, they can just turn off Wi-Fi in that area,” Roytblat explains. “In the meantime, the rest of the UK can continue to enjoy this and benefit from this advanced Wi-Fi technology.”
He believes the approach could show the rest of Europe how upper 6 GHz could be put to productive use without necessarily eliminating the possibility of future mobile operation. In other words, the choice does not necessarily have to be Wi-Fi or mobile. It could be Wi-Fi now, with spectrum sharing providing room for mobile later where needed.
Mobile equipment vendors have a stake in the outcome
The European debate also involves powerful and competing commercial interests. Asked during the interview about the influence of major European mobile equipment vendors, Roytblat says the upper 6 GHz band represents an attractive commercial opportunity for infrastructure suppliers because its propagation characteristics would require mobile networks to become more densely deployed.
“For mobile vendors, 6 GHz is a dream because they will need to sell a lot more equipment,” he says. Roytblat says equipment vendors are therefore strongly lobbying policymakers to reserve the spectrum in the expectation that mobile operators will ultimately deploy networks in the band. This is Roytblat’s assessment of the vendors’ position and incentives.
Roytblat: Europe should consider the cost of waiting
Wi-Fi Alliance is continuing to make its case in Europe. Roytblat says the organisation is working with European partners and industry associations representing sectors including Internet services, appliances and automotive, while also engaging directly with the European Commission and national governments.
The issue is becoming broader as more devices and applications depend on wireless connectivity. Roytblat specifically points to AI as another development that will increase the importance of connecting people and devices reliably.
For Wi-Fi Alliance, the central policy question is therefore not whether mobile networks matter – Roytblat explicitly stresses that they do – but whether valuable spectrum should remain unavailable to an existing technology while Europe waits to discover whether another technology will require it years from now.
That is the fundamental “cost of waiting” argument Roytblat wants European policymakers to consider. And with the UK pursuing a model designed to accommodate both Wi-Fi use today and potential mobile use in the future, Europe now has an alternative approach close to home.
Watch the full Tech Watch interview with Alex Roytblat for his analysis of Europe’s upper 6 GHz dilemma, the economics of future mobile deployment, and why Wi-Fi Alliance believes the cost of waiting is growing.
/Claus.