The Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA) announced that it's been approved as an Automated Frequency Coordination (AFC) Operator by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission. This recognition of AFC comes after four years of development, lab testing, and public trials with stakeholders, and is a critical technology to help manage the 6-GHz spectrum.
Enabling the use of standard power by devices such as Wi-Fi 6E and 7 access points, AFC also safeguards incumbent operations already using the spectrum, such as point-to-point mobile operator links and fixed wireless access (FWA) deployments.
AFC allocates the channel and power strength that can be used by a device in real-time, based on requests made to a centralized spectrum database via AFC Operators. It will address the available channels, nearby operators, and rules compliance set by regional regulators to ensure independent allocation of spectrum.
According to Tiago Rodrigues, CEO and President of the Wireless Broadband Alliance, “We are delighted our work on AFC has resulted in our approval as an AFC Operator, and the collaboration on OpenAFC has been instrumental in the development of our AFC platform. The WBA has been working with its members for over four years to see its vision for combining Wi-Fi 6E, 7 and 6-GHz AFC become a reality, as AFC is a critical component for the use of standard power on 6 GHz.
"The WBA will continue to champion the deployment of these standards globally, and we encourage all telecoms operators and Wi-Fi vendors to get involved in deploying AFC to maximize the benefits of using new spectrum on the 6-GHz band.”