Today, the Communications & Information Technology Commission (CITC) of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia formally announced plans to make 1200 megahertz (MHz) of the 6 gigahertz (GHz) wireless spectrum available for unlicensed use. Intel and Broadcom, in conjunction with the Wireless Broadband Alliance helped support CITC’s historic decision through collaboration on Wi-Fi 6E router to PC trials, which showcased the multi-gigabit speeds possible when leveraging the additional seven 160 MHz channels available in the 6 GHz band.
CITC’s decision to open the entire 6 GHz band for unlicensed use will enable Wi-Fi 6E and future Wi-Fi 7 technologies to deliver a giant leap in performance — unencumbered by legacy Wi-Fi — and will help foster continued innovation. Today, Saudi Arabia joins the U.S., U.K., EU, South Korea, Brazil and others in accelerating the evolution of Wi-Fi around the world.
“Intel would like to congratulate the CITC on its transformative direction to approve the entire 6 GHz band for unlicensed Wi-Fi use,” said Eric McLaughlin, vice president, Intel Client Computing Group, and general manager, Wireless Solutions Group. “We are honored to have been able to contribute to the Wi-Fi 6E trials which helped support CITC’s historic decision alongside our industry colleagues at Broadcom and the Wireless Broadband Alliance. With this new spectrum allocation, Saudi Arabia is well-positioned to lead the regional transition to Wi-Fi 6E and future Wi-Fi 7 technologies that will broadly enable ultra-low latency and gigabit-speed Wi-Fi capabilities to meet growing connectivity needs worldwide.”
