Jakarta. Ever since the development of 4G, global operators have regarded 2.3 GHz as a golden frequency.

Indeed, 2.3 GHz provides both capacity and coverage, which 5G makes full use of, to significantly boost the existing 4G performance. In particular, 2.3 GHz's large channel bandwidth is perfect for 5G capacity. 

Chinese tech firm Huawei recently held the Global Mobile Broadband Forum (MBBF) 2021, in partnership with its industry partners GSMA and the SAMENA Telecommunications Council.

The forum  gathers mobile network operators, vertical industry leaders, and ecosystem partners  from around the world to discuss how to maximize the potential of 5G and push the  mobile industry forward. 

The MBBF also held a discussion on the value, availability, policies of 2.3GHz spectrum.

Attending the event were speakers across the globe, including Abdulazis Bin Hussain from CITC Saudi Arabia, Huang Yuhong, China Mobile, Li Nan, GTI,  Richard CY Tan, TPG Telecom.

Whereas the Indonesian speakers included Ismail, the director general for resources and postal and informatics devices at the Communication and Informatics Ministry. As well as Telkomsel's VP RAN engineering and project, Akhmad Madces.

Despite pressure under the global health crisis, the industry behind 2.3 GHz has shown no signs of slowing down over the past year.

In fact, it has even accelerated with the launch of several new smartphones supporting 2.3 GHz. With over 70 4G/5G commercial references on 2.3 GHz, it has been forecast that more operators and  terminal vendors will take up 2.3 GHz in the near future. 

To promote the further development of the 2.3 GHz industry, MBFF 2021 leads industry partners such as operators and terminal vendors to call for accelerate the allocation of  TDD 2.3GHz spectrum (2300-2400 MHz) with TDD continuous large bandwidth up to 100 MHz, reduce the deployment cost per bit, and improve user experience across  generations. It will remove possible barriers of the use of 2.3GHz.

The MBFF urges the industry to work together to solve the problem of network coexistence and improve spectrum availability.

It also promotes the devices industry chain to make mandatory the support of NR 2.3GHz frequency in 2022, and better support key features such as EN-DC,  carrier aggregation, SUL, 1T4R/2T4R SRS Antenna Switching and 80~100 MHz channel bandwidth. 

According to Ismail, the availability of the radiofrequency spectrum is crucial to developing Indonesia’s 5G network. It is worth noting that 5G services are currently  offered at the 2.3Ghz spectrum. 

“Indonesia is an expansive archipelago that spans over 17 thousand islands, making it very challenging to connect all our islands with optic fiber. To handle millions of users, it takes optimum frequency and cost schemes in developing the infrastructure," Ismail said, as quoted from a recent statement.

"What we need is a low-band frequency to cover entire regions, in which the 2.3Ghz spectrum plays a critical role in supporting all cellular operators to use this infrastructure. We always welcome the support and increasing commitment of Huawei and Telkomsel to take part in accelerating this mission of which is embodied in their continued, long running contribution, and we truly appreciate that,” he added. 

According to Akhmad, Telkomsel will continue to maximize its 2.3Ghz spectrum capacity to support  innovation and service development supported by the latest technology.

Telkomsel recently received an additional 2.3Ghz frequency band, one of which will be used to  develop 5G networks and services in Indonesia, which is currently available in nine cities in Indonesia.

"Telkomsel is committed to continue expanding its network coverage  and develop 5G services in a scalable and gradual approach. We also hope that  Telkomsel's 5G services in the future can encourage the acceleration of the Industry  4.0 ecosystem to increase productivity and operational efficiency in various industrial  sectors," Akhmad said.

Regarding network operations, Telkomsel cooperates with various partners,  and Huawei Indonesia is one of them.

Huawei Indonesia chief technology officer Alex Xing said, thanks to the successful allocation and re-farming of the 2.3Ghz spectrum, Indonesia becomes the first country in Southeast Asia which commercialized 5G in the first half of this year. 

"5G will not only bring better, faster, stronger connectivity to the people and homes of  Indonesia, but facilitate and accelerate the digital transformation process of various  industries in this country," Alex said.

"As a strategic partner, we are extremely proud to be  supporting Telkomsel with our leading 5G solutions. It is our joint target to build a  high-performing network with best 5G experience like no other."