The Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) in KSA has announced three important dates in 2022 that will contribute to placing the Kingdom in a leading position, regionally and globally, in the ICT and telecommunications sector.
The outcomes of the three announcements will shape the industry in the Kingdom which will become a model to follow in the standardization and spectrum regional scene.
May 19th, 2022
CITC announced that the application to the award of the 450 MHz band for specialized radio network will open on April 19th, 2022 and close on May 19th, 2022.
This spectrum award contributes to CITC role as a digital regulator and implements CITC Spectrum Outlook for Commercial and Innovative Use 2021-2023 .
CITC envisions that the award of the 450 MHz frequency band to establish a broadband specialized networks for enterprises will facilitate the digital transformation of the industrial sector in the Kingdom and accelerate its adoption for wireless technologies and applications to cope with the next industrial revolution. Such a wireless broadband network will enable critical use cases like remote sensing, monitoring, and control and will automate the operations of enterprises in various industries like oil, gas, transportation and manufacturing, among others.
June 19th, 2022
On June 19th, 2022, CITC's fifth spectrum auction for IMT/5G will commence. This spectrum auction will contribute to expanding 5G wireless network coverage on roads and rural areas in the Kingdom, raising internet speeds for users, promoting investment and competition in providing wireless services. Furthermore, the auction may present the opportunity for new entrant to provide telecommunication services in the Saudi market.
Auctioning the frequency spectrum is a further step in the Kingdom’s leading position in the ICT sector. Saudi Arabia is the first amongst European, African, and Middle Eastern countries to allocate the spectrum bands (600, 3800-4000 MHz) for IMT and will be ranked first worldwide for the amount of frequency spectrum allocated to IMT in the sub 6 GHz bands.
August 23rd, 2022
CITC's first auction on the 2100MHz band for non-terrestrial networks that will commence on August 23rd, 2022, while the Information Memorandum and the Auction Rules will be released beforehand on June 26, 2022. This auction is an integral element of the CITC’s NTN program to facilitate and enable deployment of arrays of non-terrestrial technologies in the Kingdom in accordance with the CITC Outlook for Commercial and Innovative Use of Spectrum 2021-2023.
This auction is first of its kind for 5G NTN connectivity, and demonstrates CITC global leadership in enabling advanced technologies such as 5G satellite mobile communications and hybrid 5G connectivity (MSS/CGC), wireless connectivity on aircrafts, Internet of Things (IoT) through satellites, high altitude platform stations (HAPS), and low altitude platforms stations (LAPS). CITC envisions these networks to represent an evolution of wireless connectivity as wireless infrastructure are being deployed beyond the Earth surface and play a role in enhancing broadband connectivity across the kingdom.
