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The Small Cell Forum (SCF) has urged telecommunications regulators to establish consistent and supportive regulatory environments to enable the deployment of heterogeneous networks (HetNets) alongside the rollout of 5G technologies.
The organisation argues that dense HetNets will form the backbone of pervasive, resilient connectivity, improving the efficient use of spectrum and network resources.
To advance this goal, the SCF is collaborating with 5G Americas to create best-practice guidelines for governments, regulators, and municipalities across North America, and has partnered with the GSMA for efforts in Latin America. The Forum is also working with major carriers in the Middle East and Asia. In Europe, the SCF is preparing responses to the UK Digital Economy Bill, which is currently under consideration by the Public Bill Committee.
Additionally, the SCF is monitoring the review of the European telecom framework, including the Electronic Communications Code, which contains regulatory proposals intended to simplify the deployment and operation of small cells.
David Orloff, chair of the Small Cell Forum, said: “While the air interface continues to dominate industry discussion, the biggest challenges in rolling out the dense networks associated with 5G lie in the underlying network architecture and in fragmented, outdated national regulatory frameworks. We are actively engaged in defining operator and vendor priorities to bring interoperability and consistency to the enabling technologies that will form the foundation of 5G networks.
“At the same time, it is critical that the industry collaborates with regulatory bodies to create an environment in which these networks can be deployed quickly and cost-effectively,” Orloff added.
Earlier this month, the SCF published its latest best-practice guide for operators planning to deploy network function virtualisation (NFV), with coverage that also addresses 5G and IoT technologies.