Ministry of Communications and operators reached agreement
The Ministry of Digital Development, Telecommunications, and Mass Media of the Russian Federation (the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications) listened to the arguments of telecom operators and suggested choosing the frequency range 3.4–3.8 GHz as the main one when deploying 5G networks.
The priority range for 5G networks in Russia will be the frequency range 3.4-3.8 GHz
This position will be consolidated in the concept of the creation and development of fifth-generation networks, as stated in the minutes of the meeting of the specialized working group at the Digital Economy economy, which took place last week. Now in the concept, the basic range is 4.8-4.9 GHz.
At the same time, according to the ministry, in the indicated range only a few tens of MHz will be released since it is occupied by the power unit. The Ministry of Defense has already explained to the State Commission for Radio Frequencies (SCRF) its position, the essence of which is that in Russia, frequencies for 5G foreign equipment that operators plan to purchase are occupied by strategically important communication systems, including space ones. Therefore, the military proposes the use of higher frequency ranges. Operators do not like this proposal since, for a network operating in higher frequency ranges, more base stations are needed, and the cost of deploying networks will be several times higher. In addition, manufacturers of equipment and mobile devices are more focused on the range of 3.4-3.8 GHz.
It remains to add that the release of an insignificant portion of the 3.4-3.8 GHz band will not allow operators to ensure speeds for which everything is started. The speed in 5G networks, in this case, can be even lower than in 4G LTE networks.