The UK wants to be 6G leader after joining global telecoms coalition
The UK has joined a new global telecoms coalition that aims to improve the quality and resilience of telecommunications networks.
The Global Coalition on Telecommunications (GCOT) is a new initiative that brings together five leading countries: the US, Canada, Japan, Australia, and the UK.
The coalition launched earlier this month and will invest in and shape the future of telecoms.
Secretary of State for Science, Michelle Donelan, hailed the “historic partnership”.
She noted: “Telecommunications networks are the lifeline of global economies, and safeguarding their resilience and security in an evolving, interconnected world is a top priority for our governments.”
Donelan added that telecoms networks, which cover a range of technologies such as mobile and fibre broadband, are now critical to the UK economy.
That’s why the government will invest £70m in the initiative to develop next-generation technologies.
The UK and its global partners want to be at the vanguard of tech like 6G and space-based networks.
The coalition will make it easier to collaborate and conduct research and development that will expedite the roll-out of future products and services.
It will also improve information sharing and allow policymakers, businesses, and academia to discuss issues and achieve shared objectives.
This will also improve the security of telecoms networks.
NTIA Administrator, Alan Davidson said the coalition will help to improve response times to “cross-border” challenges and act decisively on new opportunities.
He concluded that telecoms should now be more “secure, diverse, resilient and innovative”.
That will be good news for the UK economy which is increasingly susceptible to supply chain issues and cyber-attacks.