Page 42 - IRANRptMay20

Faced with a crisis of this magnitude, many businesses that depend on tourism
are either closing their doors or letting go of staff to cut costs.
9.1.7 ​TMT sector news
Pressure on Iran’s public broadcaster to hand over frequencies for 5G internet
Lower end of spectrum
Iranian authorities are negotiating with public broadcaster Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) to take over 700 and 800 MHz broadcasting bands for fifth-generation (5G) internet preparation, Persian-language Information and Communication Technology News Agency (ICTNA) reported on April 30.
Previous reports have suggested that IRIB, the country’s sole broadcaster, was opposed to handing over the frequencies due to fears that it would be further sidelined in the Iranian media landscape. Since the introduction of 4G mobile connectivity in Iran in 2015, online video streaming has taken off, drawing viewers away from the traditional state-run television network of 40-plus channels.
It is estimated that the release of the two frequencies would create 30% more capacity in the telecoms broadcasting spectrum for introducing 5G internet and internet of things (IOT) services. It could also provide a potential windfall of income for the government from a spectrum auction.
Hossein Fallah Joshaghani, deputy director of the Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA), said his organisation and ministerial officials have plans to move frequencies around to prepare the ground to offer more room for telecoms developments.
Joshaghani said: “If the 700 and 800 MHz frequency bands available to IRIB are cleared and released, then it's possible to offer better quality internet and cover a wider area at a third or fifth of the current cost.”
He added that the release of the frequencies to the mobile networks would be beneficial for mobile users in Iran as it would allow “a better quality of experience for subscribers in towns and cities across the country”.
Iran is taking a similar path in the development of 5G internet to those of other countries including the US, Canada, Britain and the EU member states, using the lower end of the broadcasting spectrum for the introduction of 5G.
This frequency range was chosen as it has a larger wavelength and stronger coverage in built-up areas—this is said to allow for a stronger mobile signal and fewer masts per user.
Joshaghani said in an earlier interview that the decision to pick the range was in line with international broadcasting guidelines agreed in 2007 at the World Radiocommunication Conferences (WRC) in Geneva. Iran was an attendee and signatory at that year’s WRC.
“The 700 and 800 MHz frequency bands range from 694 to 862MHz, meaning that if a total of 49 channels are 8-MHz, 28 channels below 694 are still available to the broadcaster and can broadcast digital programmes,” he told ISNA on April 26.
Earlier this year, Iran’s Minister of Information and Communications Technology, Mohammad-Javad Azari Jahromi, said the country was preparing the ground for 5G technologies and that work would start in late March. However, the debacle over IRIB’s unwillingness to play ball and obfuscate in the face of what would normally be a central government decision has slowed the introduction of the technology and mobile network.
42​ IRAN Country Report May 2020 www.intellinews.com