3GPP coalesces around a new approach to 6G devices

Standards leaders have taken a critical step towards ensuring 6G will have a much greater diversity of devices. In March, a 3GPP workshop reached a consensus to pursue a different approach to the next generation of connected devices. The essence of this new proposal is a single technology stack that applies to all 6G device types, creating the market conditions for true economies of scale and the proliferation of new and varied devices.

Aligning with the approach we advocated in our deep-dive article in September, 3GPP has drawn on three decades of cellular devices development to rethink the way 6G devices are standardized. It proposes to maximize technology commonalities across three 6G devices layers: low-power wide-area (LPWA) networking, broadband IoT and extended broadband. 

A single and scalable stack that applies to all 6G devices is not only technically viable but will also encourage a healthier next-generation-device ecosystem. A single stack would move away from previous approaches where IoT and NTN were mostly designed as afterthought add-ons. This resulted in smartphones and other devices that never benefited from many specific features of previous standards.  

A single technology stack means that the chipset used in a low-end IoT device could be derived from the same technology used in a high-end smartphone. This will lead to multiple benefits:

• Streamlined device development: Reducing the number of chipsets to just three would simplify device development and diminish the complexity of the 6G ecosystem.

• Economies of scale: Vendors could focus on a smaller number of chipsets, leading to lower average costs for individual devices and increased production efficiency.

• Wider device adoption: A single technology stack would support a far wider range of devices, including niche devices that were not viable in the 5G era. This fosters innovation and expands the potential of the 6G ecosystem.

For instance, in 5G, dedicated chipsets and software stacks were needed to create devices for industrial applications like asset-tracking, actuator and sensing devices used in smart manufacturing. But few device makers could make a business case for building such specialized 5G devices, so very few were produced. A single stack in 6G would drive down the cost of making these industrial devices, making them commercially viable.

While the 3GPP workshop did not make any formally decisions, it confirmed the willingness of leaders in the chipset, device and infrastructure sectors to rethink 6G devices, signaling a great start to making a single device stack reality. Nokia will continue actively driving our 6G scalable-device-stack proposal, and we also intend to match this work with similar proposals for scalable protocol stacks in the RAN and core network.

As is always the case in standardization, working with stakeholders from the value chain will be key for success. As we make progress, we will continue to work and collaborate with other players to ensure a single device stack becomes part of the foundational 3GPP standards for 6G.

We have an opportunity to learn from and outperform previous generations. Let’s apply that learning together and create a lean but powerful 6G blueprint.