As the world continues to embrace what 5G networks can do, the next frontier in wireless communication – 6G – is rapidly moving from theoretical concept to active research and development. Expected to be standardised later this decade and rolled out in the 2030s, 6G promises a giant leap forward, enabling unprecedented speeds, near instantaneous response times, massive connectivity for trillions of devices, and seamless integration of physical and digital worlds. In this article, Professor Emad Alsusa discusses the potential benefits and challenges of 6G adaptation for UK society, and the proactive policies this requires.  

• The transition to 6G creates challenges around spectrum allocation, infrastructure demands, energy consumption, and risks of widening the digital divide.  
• Research led by The University of Manchester explores advanced access techniques, signal processing, and energy-efficient network designs to improve spectrum efficiency and reduce environmental impact.
• Policymakers must act early to allocate new spectrum bands and incentivise energy-efficient technologies to ensure equitable nationwide 6G access through targeted regulation and investment. 

This future network will not merely be an evolution of 5G; the vision is a foundational platform capable of supporting truly immersive experiences like holographic communication, pervasive artificial intelligence (AI) integration, and advanced applications supporting diverse sectors from healthcare and manufacturing to transportation and environmental monitoring.

Given the long lead times required for policy development, spectrum allocation (allocating specific frequency bands for the different services), and infrastructure deployment, it is crucial for policymakers and regulatory bodies to engage now, to shape 6G’s development and ensure it serves social and economic goals effectively.

Getting from spectrum to society

The advent of 6G brings with it a unique set of challenges and opportunities. The sheer scale of expected data traffic and the need for ultra-high reliability necessitates access to vast amounts of radio frequency spectrum. 6G is anticipated to utilise much higher frequency bands, including sub-THz and THz frequencies (a kind of ‘superfast lane’ of wireless, ranging from roughly 100 GHz to 10 THz), which are currently largely unexplored, underutilised, and lack clear regulatory frameworks. Establishing how these bands will be allocated, licensed, and managed globally and nationally is a fundamental task that requires urgent attention to prevent bottlenecks and ensure efficient use.

Deploying networks capable of delivering 6G’s promises may involve new infrastructures requiring significant investment, potentially impacting urban planning and raising concerns about aesthetics and environmental footprint. The integration of AI into the network architecture introduces complex questions around data privacy, security, algorithmic bias, and network control that fall squarely within the regulatory domain. There is also the critical challenge of ensuring that the benefits of 6G are accessible to all, bridging rather than widening the digital divide, and supporting a diverse range of innovative use cases safely and effectively. Proactive policy is needed to guide investment, foster competition, ensure security, and establish the necessary legal and ethical guidelines for this advanced technological era.

At The University of Manchester, research that sheds a vital light on the technical feasibility and potential implementation strategies for the underpinning of these advanced 6G networks is taking place. Already, this research has made significant contributions to the understanding and application of advanced multiple access techniques, such as Non-Orthogonal Multiple Access (NOMA). These findings are highly relevant to policy discussions around spectrum efficiency (how well you’re using the available radio frequencies), as NOMA explores ways for multiple users to share the same frequency and time resources simultaneously. This means potentially increasing network capacity and accommodating the massive connectivity demands of 6G, without requiring equally vast amounts of new spectrum. Similarly, research in areas like advanced signal processing and interference management is crucial for realising the potential of exploiting higher frequency bands like sub-THz, where signals behave differently, and interference is a complex challenge. Providing insights into how sophisticated signal processing algorithms can overcome these technical hurdles will enable the effective integration of sensing (detecting information) and communication at extremely high data rates.

Our research is also exploring energy-efficient network architectures and novel transmission techniques, directly addressing concerns around the environmental impact of vastly expanded network infrastructure. In combination, these research areas provide critical data and theoretical frameworks that can inform regulatory decisions on spectrum access, network deployment strategies, and performance standards by demonstrating what is technically achievable and how network resources can be optimised for efficiency and capacity.

Shaping 6G through proactive policies

Shaping 6G through proactive policies Based on the evolving technical landscape of wireless communications, several key policy recommendations emerge for the successful and beneficial development of 6G.

Regarding spectrum allocation and management, The Office of Communications (Ofcom) must prioritise the identification and clearing of sub-THz and THz frequency bands for future mobile use. Drawing from research on advanced spectrum sharing techniques, flexible and dynamic spectrum management frameworks should be developed, in partnership between Ofcom and The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), with input from both industry and academia. These frameworks should enable more efficient use of both new and existing spectrum resources, reducing wastage and working with legacy systems and other services, moving beyond rigid, exclusive licensing models where appropriate.

The ambitious target proposed for 6G is that it should have a 100 times greater energy efficiency compared to 5G, meaning 6G must transmit significantly more data for the same amount of energy. Sustainability needs to be deeply integrated into the design of 6G from the outset and incorporating intelligent network management which is able to adapt the network resources to traffic demands, putting unused components into sleep modes and even turning off entire cells during low-traffic periods, will be necessary. For such ambitious targets to be achieved, there is a role for government to incentivise the telecommunications industry to adopt and deploy green communication technologies and low-energy network architectures to significantly reduce power consumption.

Targets, efficiency, policies and ways forward

A multi-pronged approach using a combination of incentives and disincentives is likely to be effective. These could include policies such as reduced corporation tax, or enhanced capital allowance in proportion to their investments into more energy-efficiency approaches or equipment, grants and subsidies in the form of direct funding for relevant research and development, with additional market incentives such as green bonds and carbon credits. As for disincentives, these could include setting stricter limits on energy consumption, carbon taxes, and tying licensing and renewals to certain energy efficiency requirements.

Setting clear, ambitious targets for energy efficiency and potentially supporting research and pilot projects in areas like energy-neutral network nodes could drive the development and adoption of sustainable 6G infrastructure aligned with net-zero emission goals.

To ensure digital inclusion and accessibility, government must implement proactive policies to guarantee equitable 6G rollout across urban, rural, and underserved areas, preventing the exacerbation of the digital divide. This could involve targeted subsidies for infrastructure deployment in commercially challenging areas, mandates for infrastructure sharing among operators, and promoting public-private partnerships. Universal service obligations should be updated to define and ensure access to high-speed 6G connectivity as a baseline, supported by policies to promote affordability for all citizens.

Concerning use-case specific regulations, recognising that 6G will enable transformative applications, policymakers and regulators need to establish cross-sector dialogues and develop agile regulatory frameworks. For airborne platforms like unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and high-altitude platform systems (HAPS) integrated into communication networks, coordination with aviation safety and airspace management bodies is paramount.

For critical ultra-reliable, low-latency (quick response time) services such as remote surgery and autonomous vehicles, new performance guarantees, certification processes, and liability frameworks must be developed in collaboration with relevant industry and safety bodies. For smart city infrastructure, urban planning policies need to evolve to facilitate the dense deployment of smart technology, ensuring seamless and efficient urban connectivity while addressing privacy and security concerns.

The transition to 6G presents immense potential for technological advancement and for society. Realising this potential requires proactive and informed policy and regulatory action to be taken. By understanding the technical underpinnings through ongoing research, particularly in crucial areas like spectrum utilisation and energy efficiency, policymakers can develop frameworks that facilitate innovation, ensure equitable access, prioritise sustainability, and enable the safe and effective deployment of transformative applications that 6G promises to deliver.

Ignoring these challenges now means risking the UK’s ability to seize the opportunities and avoid the pitfalls in the coming 6G era.