Recently, the United States, together with 10 countries including Japan, the United Kingdom, France, and South Korea, issued a joint statement saying that they have reached common principles for the research and development of 6G wireless communication systems. This move quickly attracted widespread attention and interpretation around the world. How much impact does this statement have on China?
First, the development of global communication standards is not something that can be decided by any one country alone. This rule has long been established in the international community, and global communication standards can only be determined by the International Telecommunication Union, which is composed of almost all countries in the world, and its standard-setting power is jointly held by each member state, and each country has only one vote. Therefore, even if the United States had the will, it would not be able to make a statement on the issue of communication standards.
Second, a review of history shows that the international standards for mobile communications before 5G did not fully develop in accordance with the wishes of the United States. For example, while the U.S.-backed CDMA standard was adopted by the International Telecommunication Union in the 2G era, in the 4G era, the standard has merged with other standards, leaving U.S. companies with no clear advantage in the global marketplace. This is also the reason why the United States is so active on the issue of 6G standards.
Let's take a look at the real intention of the United States and these countries to jointly promote the 6G standard. In fact, they want to cut into the mobile communication equipment market. Since U.S. companies are near-marginal in this market, they are trying to disrupt the existing market landscape with Open RAN technology. However, this strategy has proven unworkable in the 5G era, as telecom operators prefer to purchase the entire system rather than procure components from multiple companies for assembly. Not only is this approach complex, but it can also lead to incompatibilities and network failures.
The U.S. is lagging behind China in the race for 5G technology, especially with Huawei, which is leading the world in 5G technology. In order to compete for control of the next generation of wireless network technology, the United States does not hesitate to use its national power to suppress Chinese technology companies around the world. However, this strategy may struggle to work in the 6G era. As technology continues to advance, 6G and beyond will be primarily used for industrial applications rather than public networks. This means that the public's perception of 6G and beyond-level network technologies will gradually wane, and industry applications will become dominant.
Overall, although the announcement of the United States and other countries to promote the 6G standard has attracted widespread attention, the impact on China is actually limited. Since decisions on global communication standards are in the hands of the International Telecommunication Union, not individual countries. At the same time, with the evolution of technology, future network technologies will focus more on industry applications rather than public perception. Therefore, as long as China insists on independent innovation and actively participates in international cooperation, it will be able to maintain a favorable position in the global competition in communication technology.