On 6G Visions and Requirements

Abstract

6G represents standardized communication systems that will be commercially available in 2030s. Even if the initial 5G networks, basing on the 3GPP Release 15, have hardly started become commercially available gradually as of 2019 and their large-scale deployment is still years away, industry is already keen to envision the justification and performance of the forthcoming generation. While there are no concrete 6G standards produced at this stage, their planning will benefit from realistic indications of the requirements and type of usage. The task is not straightforward as users, including a variety of verticals with their rather different communication environments, are sometimes not capable of expressing their future needs in technical terms nor industry might be able to prognosticate the demand that has not yet equivalence in preceding systems. This paper analyses some of the most important current visions of key standardization bodies and assesses indications of the industry for the potential requirements, service types, use cases, and architectural and functional models that can serve as a building block for the actual realization of the visions. This paper also presents means that can be applied in further interpretation and assessment of the vertical needs and priorities, with examples reflecting the benefits of Network Slice requirements that the GSMA North Americas Network Slicing Taskforce studied for foreseen near future environment and that may be extended to be utilized also in exploration of 6G requirements.