Spain’s MásOrange signals a next step in the 6G story

• 6G is looming larger as specifications work reaches a critical point
• MásOrange has undertaken 6GHz tests with Ericsson to set a benchmark for its pre-6G efforts
• Integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) is key to its 6G R&D plans

It’s been brewing for a quite a while, but expect 6G to be front and centre in telecom sector R&D efforts, rather than on the sidelines, from hereon in as mobile operators around the world move from PowerPoints and labs to tests and trials and as vendors jostle for position to capture the new business opportunities that the 6G era will offer. 

Why now? 

Because it’s September 2026, less than two years until the 2026 Summer Olympics, where Qualcomm has been urged by the US administration to have pre-standards products ready to show off to the world and, some hope, help the US be the frontrunner in the ‘6G race’ that seems to be important for some (but not all). 

It’s also time for the next 3GPP technical specification group (TSG) plenary meetings – for the RAN (radio access network), SA (service and system aspects) and CT (Core Network and Terminals) TSGs – to be held in Madrid from 14-18 September, which are set to be critical to the development of the next generation of wireless technology. As my colleague Guy Daniels noted in this Substack post about the outcomes from the previous RAN plenary gathering held in June in Singapore, “The Scenarios and Requirements study is finished, but the political questions it deferred are not. The requirements now say what 6G must do. September begins the fight over what it will be.”

And we’re in a critical period for telco AI developments: Strategies are clearer and evolving and 6G will be AI native (as well as cloud native), as TelecomTV has just outlined in our latest free-to-download editorial report, The AI-Native Path to 6G.

Just how far developed AI-native telco strategies are right now will become clearer during the AI-Native Telco Forum (Düsseldorf, 8-9 September), during which a groundbreaking report running to hundreds of pages will be unveiled (more on that in the coming days). 

There has been no shortage of 6G activity up to now, of course – indeed, Ericsson kicked off this year’s MWC26 show in Barcelona by bragging it had “successfully completed the world’s first 6G pre-standard over-the-air (OTA) session” at its 5G Smart Factory in Lewisville, Texas. 

But we’re entering into a period of much more serious 6G test and trial activity now. 

We reported last month that Australian mobile operator Optus had teamed up with Nokia for tests using 6GHz spectrum as part of a 6G research trial.

Now MásOrange, an important part of the Orange empire and the largest operator in Spain (by customer numbers), has just announced it has successfully completed tests with Ericsson using spectrum in the 6GHz band which, the telco noted in this announcement (in Spanish), will be “key to the rollout of 6G, just as the 3.5GHz band was for 5G,” as it offers “a unique combination of coverage, capacity, and efficiency.” (Note, though, that spectrum licences for the 6GHz band have not yet been allocated in Spain.) 

That combination will be needed for the service that, as our AI-Native Path to 6G report highlighted, looks set to be the game-changer for 6G – integrated sensing and communication (ISAC).

As MásOrange notes, “6G aims to take a step forward by natively integrating communications, intelligence, automation and the ability to sense and interpret the environment. In this context, ISAC technologies represent a prime example of the transformative innovation that 6G will enable,” with future networks not only transmitting data but also “perceiving” their surroundings using the same radio signals. 

“The 6 GHz band will be a key enabler of this vision, combining capacity, coverage and efficiency to support new services based on artificial intelligence, automation, digital twins and advanced monitoring of the physical world,” noted the Spanish telco, which identified the following potential applications:

• detecting people or vehicles without the need for cameras

• tracking assets in ports, factories, or airports

• monitoring movements in industrial environments

• identifying obstacles for autonomous mobility systems

• creating real-time digital twins of cities, roads and infrastructure.

Víctor Manuel Plaza, the project lead at MásOrange, stated: “The 6GHz band will multiply the capacity available in mobile networks to absorb the organic data growth driven by the intensive use of AI and advanced digital experiences. This is a fundamental technological enabler for any operator aspiring to lead the market over the next decade."

The good news for Ericsson and its peers is that although network operators are keen to avoid the rip-and-replace investments needed for the transition from 4G to 5G, the introduction of 6G will require capex budgets to be allocated to at least some new mobile network technologies, particularly in the RAN. 

With that in mind, MásOrange noted that its tests with Ericsson involved the use of “advanced active antenna architectures, evolving from current 64-transmitter/receiver (64TR) configurations to 256TR systems – potentially quadrupling the number of radiating elements. Additionally, advanced signal steering (beamforming) techniques were tested. This technology enables the data transmission beam to be steered dynamically and with ultra-high precision towards the specific location and needs of each mobile user, improving utilisation of available spectrum and significantly increasing network capacity.” 

MásOrange said the tests are part of its “innovation strategy to anticipate future connectivity needs and prepare infrastructure for the new era of artificial intelligence, automation, quantum computing, immersive digital experiences and future use cases that will transform entire sectors of the economy.” 

That sounds like the kind of optimism that accompanied the pre-5G era – let’s hope the industry has more success this time around. 

- Ray Le Maistre, Editorial Director, TelecomTV