Saudi Arabia to roll out 5G trial licenses to telecom operators

Saudi Communication and Information Technology Commission (CITC) will soon provide temporary licenses to mobile telecom operators to start fifth generation (5G) trial operations, Majid Al Qahtani, CITC’s director of frequencies said.

The licenses will be granted for 3.4-3.8 GHz and 3.8-4.2 GHz bands.

The commercial launch of 5G services is expected to be in 2020 and will allow future internet speeds to increase, Majed Al Mezyed, deputy governor for technical and spectrum affairs at the commission said.

On the other hand, Mohammed Alotaibi, the general manager of frequency spectrum, said CITC has set the bandwidth (3.4-3.8) GHz as initial range for future applications of the fifth generation in Saudi Arabia.

The commission considers setting additional frequencies within the bandwidth (3.8-4.2) GHz, Alotaibi added.