The government has finally allowed license-free use of a portion of the high-speed 6GHz spectrum required for next-generation devices such as smart glasses, accepting a key demand from major tech companies over objections from Indian telecom operators.
“No person shall require a license or frequency allocation to establish, maintain, operate, own or trade in any wireless equipment for the purposes of low-power indoor and very low-power outdoor wireless access systems, including radio local area networks operating in the frequency band 5925-6425 MHz,” the Department of Communications said in a Jan. 20 notice.
India joins 96 countries to allow 6GHz spectrum for WiFi. Companies can use these waves without buying them through auctions in India, which has been demanded by a lobby representing Sony, Meta, Apple and Google. Telecom service providers have opposed the unlicensed use of spectrum and sought to make the entire band suitable for data growth and provide affordable 5G and future 6G services.
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“It’s a win-win for all stakeholders, especially consumers. Consumers will benefit as advanced WiFi 6E technology will be available with greater throughput and security features,” said Satya N. Gupta, former senior adviser to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India. Telecom operators can also benefit from being able to perform mobile data offloading – moving data from congested networks to alternatives – on WiFi to avoid congesting their licensed spectrum for better quality of service, he said.
Gupta said the move will also help the ‘Make in India’ initiative by providing an opportunity to manufacture and export WiFi 6E devices.
It paves the way for next-generation devices
The band is essential for providing high-speed WiFi and supporting gadgets such as the Sony PlayStation, Apple’s augmented and virtual reality devices, and Ray-Ban’s Meta smart glasses.
Some tech companies couldn’t launch these gadgets in the country because the 6GHz WiFi spectrum band was unavailable, according to industry executives. For example, in November 2024, Sony said that its PlayStation 5 Pro would not be released in India without the 6GHz band.
Currently, home WiFi routers operate on the 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz bands. Analysts suggest that an upgrade to the 6 GHz band can increase the speed and performance of home broadband using the new WiFI 6E and 7 technologies.
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“The industry has been waiting for more than four years for the 6 GHz band to be allowed. This is one of the most important telecom decisions to keep pace with technological advancement,” said TV Ramachandran, president of the Broadband India Forum (BIF), whose members include companies such as Google and Meta.
According to Ramachandran, WiFi services and speeds will improve, which is crucial because almost 80% of data is now consumed indoors.
Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said at an industry event on 24 June that rules for unlicensed use of the 6 GHz band would be published by 15 August 2025, but the final announcement was delayed.
Signal strength higher than expected
A total of 1200 MHz of spectrum is available in the 6 GHz band. Of this, 700 MHz will be auctioned to mobile service providers, while the remaining 500 MHz has been licensed for WiFi use.
However, the spectrum allocation plan of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) released on December 30 did not mention unlicensed use of any part of the 6 GHz band, although a proposal released in May last year suggested it.
The DoT has proposed the use of the license-free band in indoor and very low-power outdoor wireless access systems.
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However, in the latest Unlicensed Use Notice on January 20, the government also increased the power spectral density to 11 dBm (decibel-milliwatts) per MHz for low-power indoor equipment from 5 dBm in the proposal. For very low power outdoor devices, the power spectral density has increased from -5 dBm to 1 dBm per MHz. This would ensure that the devices emit stronger radio signals.
Large technology companies, represented by BIF, demanded increased power density for indoor use. However, the government did not change the power limits for outdoor use, despite Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd’s request to allow a higher signal power.
According to the announcement, high-speed equipment using the lower 6 GHz band will be banned from oil rigs. The government said indoor use is prohibited on land vehicles (such as cars or trains), boats and aircraft, except for flights above 10,000 feet. In addition, companies using the band will not be able to operate drones and unmanned aerial systems.
The aim of this step is to prevent any signal interference with the licensed spectrum for certain critical applications.
