技术中立性和传统网络日落

The Evolution ofConnectivity in Africa December 2023 The GSMA is a global organisation unifying themobile ecosystem to discover, develop and deliverinnovation foundational to positive businessenvironments and societal change. Our vision isto unlock the full power of connectivity so thatpeople, industry, and society thrive. Representingmobile operators and organisations across themobile ecosystem and adjacent industries, the GSMA Intelligence is the definitive source of globalmobile operator data, analysis and forecasts, andpublisher of authoritative industry reports andresearch. Our data covers every operator group,network and MVNO in every country worldwide GSMA Intelligence is relied on by leading operators,vendors, regulators, financial institutions and third-party industry players, to support strategic decision-making and long-term investment planning. Our team of analysts and experts produce regularthought-leading research reports across a range of We invite you to find out more at www.gsma.com Follow the GSMA on Twitter/X: @GSMA www.gsmaintelligence.com info@gsmaintelligence.com Authors Kenechi Okeleke, Director, GSMA IntelligenceKalvin Bahia, Principal Economist, GSMA Intelligence Contributors Kamal Tamawa, Director, Spectrum and Industry Services, GSMA Sub-Saharan AfricaLuiz Felippe Zoghbi, Director, Spectrum Engagement, GSMA Contents Executive summary 1. The benefits of technology-neutral licences1.1 Defining technology-neutral licensing1.2 The rationale for technology-neutral spectrum licences1.3 The global status of technology-neutral licensing 2. Legacy network sunsets in Africa: status and outlook2.1 Sunsets in numbers2.2 Global trends and drivers 3. Preparing for future networks: a call to action Executive summary The crucial role of technology-neutral spectrumlicensing Spectrum is a scarce resource, so its use needs tobe optimised. This means that as mobile operatorsadopt newer technologies, they often need to rely onexisting spectrum resources. The need for additionalspectrum to meet the coverage and capacity Technology neutrality looks to maximise the efficientuse of scarce spectrum resources (enabling thedelivery of more data per MHz). This objectiveis shared by regulators and mobile operators.Optimum use of spectrum generates the greatestsocietal impact from mobile broadband services and The initial rollout of 4G in many pioneer marketswas based on technology neutrality and spectrumrefarming. Technology neutrality is also enabling Technology-neutral licensing is an importantenabler of legacy network sunsets. Between 2015and mid-August 2023, a total of 91 networks wereshut down, of which 43 were 2G networks and 48were 3G networks. At least 148 networks will be — 850 and 900 MHz from 2G to 4G— 900 MHz from 2G to 3G— 1800 MHz and 1900 MHz from 2G to 4G Africa looks to a smooth transition of networks In Africa, it is still early days for legacy networksunsets, reflecting the state of its connectivitylandscape compared to other regions. The early Importantly, the process should be driven bymarket conditions, rather than mandated. This callsfor collaboration among stakeholders, including 01.The benefits of technology- 1.1 Defining technology-neutral licensing In the evolution of mobile networks over the pastthree decades, most of the existing spectrum hasbeen used for 2G and 3G services. Typically, 800/900MHz and 1800 MHz were assigned for 2G, while 3Ghas been mostly deployed in the 1900/2100 MHz more efficient technologies. For example, a mobileoperator using 1800 MHz to provide 2G servicesmay opt to free a portion of this range for 4G or 5G Technology neutrality does not mean mobileoperators can do anything they choose within afrequency band; regulations govern the deploymentof radio communications networks including, forexample, those designed to protect other spectrum Technology-neutral spectrum licensing (technologyneutrality) is crucial to allow mobile operators torefarm spectrum used for legacy networks (2G and Service neutrality: a key complement to technology neutrality Technology-neutral licensing refers to spectrum licences that allow the deployment of any standards-based technology that complies with regulations in the licensed frequency band. However, it must bebased on the premise of service neutrality, which enables operators with spectrum licences to offer This complement eliminates limitations on the range of mobile services that operators can provideand the necessity to secure a licence or permit to introduce a new mobile service – for instance, whereoperators authorised to provide 2G, 3G and 4G services need an additional permit to offer fixed Around the world, there is a growing shift away from service-specific mobile licences and towardsthe adoption of service-neutral mobile licences and/or unified licensing frameworks that allowoperators to offer a range of mobile telecoms services on a single licence. For example, theUnified Access Se