Jan Ellsberger, Director General of ETSI and former Vice President of Swedish telecoms company Ericsson, said preparations for the bloc's 6G standardization will begin soon, despite the bloc's lack of consensus on the deployment of 5G technology across the 27 member states.

He also added that 6G is not meant to be a major revolution, but rather a “smooth evolution” of 5G.

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5G standardization is not yet finalized, the EU is considering building standards for 6G. Photo: Yahoo Tech

ETSI has more than 950 member organizations, in 65 different countries, and is tasked with setting globally applicable standards, being one of the organizations driving global telecommunications standardization within 3GPPP - the global consortium developing protocols for mobile telecommunications.

Once the 6G specifications are ready, they will serve as the basis for standardization in all participating regions such as the EU, US, India, Japan, China and South Korea.

The European Commission's State of the Digital Decade report released in June found that the target of global 5G coverage by 2023 had been missed. An EU official warned in January that continued delays in the rollout of 5G in Europe meant that other technologies that rely on high-speed internet, such as artificial intelligence, would also face delays in adoption.

The European Commission’s call for standardization of 6G mobile technology is just a small part of ETSI’s work, which is also behind the AI ​​Act, which came into force earlier this month to regulate high-risk applications.

Ellsberger said it could take anywhere from a few months to a few years for standards to be developed, depending on the topic. “Standardization is a spontaneous request from industry. The more industry commitment, the faster the rulemaking process.”

(According to Yahoo Tech, Bloomberg)

The US and nine other countries emphasize safety, inclusiveness and sustainability when developing the next generation of wireless technology - 6G.