Ahead of World Radiocommunication Conference 2015 (WRC-15), GSMA has expressed its disappointment at the Asia-Pacific Telecommunity’s Conference Preparatory Group (APG) decision to identify only 51MHz of additional spectrum for mobile broadband.

“This represents an increase of less than five per cent over the total amount of spectrum currently identified for the region. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) estimates that governments need much more – double the amount of mobile spectrum available today – to meet the growing consumer demand for data,” said John Giusti, Deputy Chief Regulatory Officer of GSMA.

“With 4G rising and 5G on the horizon, and without more spectrum identified, this means that Asia Pacific cannot benefit from economies of scale and affordable connectivity and puts the future of its digital economy at risk,” he added.