3GPP Meeting Brings Key Advancements for 5G Broadcast

Jun 8

FROM THE EDITOR

Hello 5G Broadcast Enthusiasts,

The recently concluded 3GPP RAN meetings in Malta brought with them two notable milestones for 5G Broadcast, both of which will be included in Release 19 — further reinforcing the foundation for upcoming commercial deployments.

One of the major highlights was the official approval of Band 112 (470MHz - 608MHz) and Band 113 (606MHz - 698MHz). This decision expands the standardized spectrum options for 5G Broadcast, offering more flexibility for deployments across different regions and regulatory environments. The inclusion of these bands is a positive signal for both regulators and implementers working toward coordinated frequency planning.

Another critical advancement came from RAN1, where work on time/frequency interleaving (TFI) was completed. TFI significantly improves 5G Broadcast reception performance in mobile environments, particularly under challenging channel conditions like signal fading or temporary blockages. The interleaver works by distributing data across time and frequency, allowing devices to correctly decode packets even if there are short interruptions in the signal. With a maximum interleaving depth of 512ms, 5G Broadcast can now support mobile reception with up to four times less received power, making it especially effective for vehicular and handheld use cases.

This enhancement addresses a long-standing requirement for consistent and reliable performance in real-world, mobile scenarios—one of the key use cases for 5G Broadcast. Together, these developments represent meaningful progress toward making 5G Broadcast a practical and scalable communication layer, built to support both public and commercial services.

We will continue to monitor the progress across working groups and look forward to sharing further updates as the standard continues to evolve.

Mehul Agarwal

(Editor, 5G Broadcast Collective)

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