ITI Urges Brazilian Lawmakers to Maintain Full Access to Broadband to Spur Economic Growth
BRASÍLIA, BRAZIL – Today, global technology trade association the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI) testified before the Brazilian Congress on the importance of 6 Ghz band allocation in Brazil. ITI’s Senior Manager of Policy for the Americas Husani Durans de Jesus shared industry’s perspective on why access to unlicensed spectrum is essential to Brazil’s economic growth and urged the government to maintain full unlicensed access to the 6 GHz band.
“Wi-Fi, which relies on access to unlicensed spectrum bands, is increasingly ubiquitous in every home and business, connecting billions of devices to the internet, and promoting broadband connectivity throughout Brazil,” Durans de Jesus said in his testimony. “However, due to limited unlicensed spectrum, intensive Wi-Fi use, and areas of high population density, networks in Brazil increasingly experience congestion. We encourage Brazilian policymakers to maintain its designation of the full 6 GHz band available on a technology-neutral, unlicensed basis. This allocation will achieve global and regional harmonization to enable economy-of-scale advantages that add huge economic benefits to Brazil and contribute to increased GDP.”
Unlicensed use of the 6 GHz band is already enabling new, high-bandwidth use cases and overcoming congestion and interference in the existing, heavily used 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz unlicensed bands. As Wi-Fi exploded in popularity, competition for spectrum resources between networks and applications began to affect quality of service, leading to variable and inconsistent latencies. With Anatel’s decision to allocate the 6 Ghz band for unlicensed use, congestion is decreasing steadily, and new products are entering the Brazilian market. A reversal of this decision would negatively impact consumer purchases and connectivity. Technologies using the 6 GHz band can assist in addressing the digital divide, improving rural connectivity, accelerating economic innovation, advancing energy efficiency through smart buildings, and improving quality of service.
Watch ITI’s testimony here. (s’ouvre dans un nouvel onglet)