‘Omnipresent’: Australia Signs 6G Agreement With US, UK

A woman talks on her phone as she walks through Hyde Park in Sydney, Australia on Oct. 22, 2019. Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images

Australia has signed an agreement with the governments of the United States, Canada, the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Sweden, and the UK covering the introduction of 6G mobile data technology.

The existing 5G network spans only a fraction of the continent—though Telstra claims its network is the largest and covers 85 percent of the population.

5G is now available, at least partially, in all capital cities (except Darwin) and in several regional centres in each state. There are no 5G deployments in the Northern Territory at present.

Australians have been quick to adopt the technology. Counterpoint Research reported the country had a 5G smartphone penetration rate of 82 percent in the first quarter of last year, representing around 8.8 million connections, a rise of 40 percent from the previous year.

In contrast, in France, Spain, Germany, and the UK, 5G handset penetration ranged between 20 and 30 percent.

The advanced progress of 5G comes despite internet speeds in Australia being relatively mid-range, at 242.98 Megabits per second (Mps) download in Sydney and 249.99 Mbps in Melbourne, according to Speedtest.net.

Delhi achieved 357.43 Mbps; Shanghai 301.80 Mbps; and Seoul 533.95 Mbps. Kuala Lumpur was rated at 523.44 Mbps, while even those in Wellington, New Zealand enjoyed better median speeds, at 312.40 Mbps.

Coverage map for Telstra's 5G network. The telco claims to have the broadest coverage in Australia. Courtesy of Telstra

‘Omnipresent Wireless Intelligence’

While it’s too early to say with any certainty, some experts predict that 6G will have a peak data rate of 1 terabyte per second for data transmitted in short bursts across limited distances.

The multi-country agreement acknowledges that 6G is still more of a concept than a reality, committing the signatories to “shared principles for the research and development of 6G wireless communication systems” because “by working together we can support open, free, global, interoperable, reliable, resilient, and secure connectivity.”

Mobile developer Ericsson describes it as having the capacity to create “truly omnipresent wireless intelligence” and says it is  “built on the desire to create a seamless reality where the digital and physical worlds as we know them today have merged” as part of what it calls the “cyber-physical continuum.”

“Future networks will be a fundamental component for the functioning of virtually all parts of life, society,” the company says, with “countless sensors ... embedded in the physical world to send data to update the digital representation in real-time.”

The countries that signed the agreement say they see the technology as “facilitating the ability of participating governments and partners to protect national security” as well as being “reliable, resilient, safe, and protect[ing] the privacy of individuals.”

They will also advance artificial intelligence, the agreement predicts.

Health Concerns Continue

The rollout of 5G has been met with concern in many sectors, including medicine.

A 2021 article in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health by epidemiologist Professor John William Frank notes that the “inherent fragility [of transmission at the frequencies used by 5G] means that transmission boosting ‘cell’ antennae are generally required every 100 to 300 metres—which is far more spatially dense than the transmission masts required for older 2G, 3G and 4G technology, using lower frequency waves.”

While the article debunks claims of a link between 5G and COVID-19, it concludes that “based on the precautionary principle” there should be “a moratorium on the further roll-out of 5G systems globally, pending more conclusive research on their safety.”

An article the following year in the Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care heralded the many advantages to medicine of 5G technology but cautioned: “The concerns about possible adverse effects to human health needs to be addressed. The health effects of frequencies in the range of 450 to 6,000 MHz are cautioned. There is a need for studies on nonthermal effects of the higher frequencies.”

6G networks will use even higher frequencies than 5G. First lab testing and pilots of 6G are expected to begin in 2028, with commercial release probable in or near 2030, though Beijing has already launched a 6G test satellite.