This week the newly created Joint Undertaking on Smart Networks and Services towards 6G (JU SNS) adopted its first Workprogramme 2021-2022 with an earmarked public funding of about 245 Meuro.
The Centre Tecnològic de Telecomunicacions de Catalunya (CTTC), in the person of its Director of R&D Programmes Dr. Carles Antón-Haro, has been directly involved in the elaboration of this 6G R&I Workprogramme. This has followed from CTTC’s participation since 2014 in the Governing Board of the 6G Smart Networks and Services Industry Association (6G-IA) where major equipment vendors, mobile network operators, research centers and academia from all over Europe are represented.
The Work Programme 2021-2022 will fund activities ranging from 5G evolution including large-scale trials and pilots with vertical industries to frontier research towards 6G systems. This Workprogramme is the basis for the upcoming Call for Project Proposals to be launched in early January 2022. The resulting R&I projects are expected to start by the end of 2022 to complement the early wave of European 6G projects launched in January 2021 under the umbrella of the 5G-PPP. CTTC is also playing a major role in this early wave via their participation/leadership in the MARSAL, TERAFLOW, MONB5G, 5GMediaHub, INSPIRE-5GPlus, and 5G Epicentre projects. CTTC raised about 11 Meuro in 5G-PPP R&D projects, for a total of 22 participations, and became the second largest recipient among all research centers and universities in Europe.
The Workprogramme 2021-2022 is the first step in the strategic R&I roadmap towards 6G for Europe. The initiative builds on an EU contribution of 900 Meuro over the next 7 years to be matched by the private sector with the same amount. The aim is to enable European players to build the R&I capacities for 6G systems and develop lead markets for 5G infrastructure as a basis for the digital and green transformation. The commercial deployment of future 6G communication systems is planned to take place around year 2030.
For further information, please, contact comunicacio@cttc.cat