First pre-6G video stream in Austria: A1 and Nokia work on the progress of mobile technology

At the A1 Technology Center in Vienna, A1 and technology partner Nokia have taken the next step in the evolution of mobile communications: For the first time in Central Europe, a pre-6G video stream was carried out in the upper 6 GHz spectrum. This spectrum exemplifies the possibility of significantly expanding capacities and making even better use of existing frequency bands and supplementing them with additional resources.

The mobile ecosystem is growing rapidly and includes forward-looking technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), extended reality, autonomous vehicles, robots and artificial intelligence (AI). The combination of new services and devices and a sharp increase in usage are driving the growth of data traffic and making it necessary to continuously develop existing networks. As part of this development, a special focus is placed on efficiency, sustainability, safety and the interaction with new technologies.

The result of the tests at the A1 Technology Center shows the great potential of mobile communications for future 5G-Advanced and 6G applications and underlines A1's commitment to the sustainable development of the digital infrastructure.

A1 Austria CTO Christian Laqué: "I am pleased that we can demonstrate the possibilities of future wireless technologies here at the A1 Technology Center. After all, we will continue to provide the basis for rapidly advancing digitalization in the future and take into account the increasing demand for secure connectivity. Today's Pre-6G transmission shows that we can build on existing infrastructures as we continue to develop our networks and make them even more efficient."

Christoph Rohr, Country Manager, Nokia: "We are just at the beginning of a long journey, but with this proof of concept, we have demonstrated that 6G will not only  meet the growing demand for data traffic but also unlock groundbreaking possibilities, such as network sensing and the transformative role of AI in the networks of the future in an efficient, sustainable and secure way.”

A1 Group CTO Alexander Kuchar: "As a leading telecommunications company in the CEE region, it is important to us to drive innovation in the field of digital infrastructure. In doing so, we focus on innovation and cooperation in industry on the one hand, and sustainability and safety on the other. In this way, as a pioneer of technological progress, we take responsibility for the digital lives of our customers."

More capacity and speed
As part of the trial, a 128TRX Massive MIMO transmitter from Nokia and a MediaTek test terminal were used as receivers. Under practical conditions, it was shown that the spectrum used in this process can be used in existing macro networks and is compatible with the range of current mobile radio cells. The test results show possibilities to significantly increase urban capacities while maintaining an unchanged network of locations. At the same time, transmission speeds in suburban and rural areas can be significantly improved.

Photo (from left to right): A1 Group CTO Alexander Kuchar, Christoph Rohr, Country Manager Nokia, A1 Austria CTO Christian Laqué (c) A1/APA/Rastegar