June 6, 2024 Technical Requirements for a Public Broadband Mobile Communication System and Narrowband IoT Communication System in the V-High Band
- Inquiry to the Information and Communications Council -

 Today, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) submitted an inquiry to the Information and Communications Council (chaired by ENDO Nobuhiro, Special Advisor, NEC Corporation) regarding the technical requirements for a public broadband mobile communication system and narrowband IoT communication system in the V-High band.

1. Background of the inquiry

 The frequency range 172.5 to 202.5 MHz in the V-High band (170 to 222 MHz) is allocated to the public broadband mobile communication system (hereinafter referred to as “Public BB”), a wireless communication system that enables public agencies to transmit videos at disaster sites dynamically, etc. In FY 2020, regulatory reforms were implemented to increase the number of user entities and to enable the use of the sky; however, given the frequent occurrence of natural disasters in recent years, there is a need to further expand their use, such as ensuring communication availability for local governments during disaster situations.
 The frequency range 207.5 to 222 MHz had been allocated to multimedia broadcasting; however, with the termination of the broadcasting operations in 2016, the frequency range became available, following which a study was conducted by the Study Subcommittee on Utilization Measures for Broadcast Frequencies. The subcommittee proposed a study to introduce a specific system (narrowband IoT communication system) for advancing communications services in the “Summary of the Results of a Demonstration Experiment in the V-High Band,” published in June 2022.
 Furthermore, the “Frequency Reorganization Action Plan (FY 2023)” published in November 2023, which also takes into consideration the “Summary of the Results of a Demonstration Experiment in the V-High Band” and the “Report of the Radio Policy Roundtable in the Age of Digital Transformation (August 2021),” states that technical requirements should be compiled by the end of FY 2024 for expansion of the Public BB frequency and introduction of a narrowband IoT communication system, which enables public safety agencies to share information during times of disaster, into the guard bands, etc., between the Public BB and other systems.
 Based on the above, MIC submitted an inquiry to the Information and Communications Council to conduct a study on technical requirements for the Public BB and narrowband IoT communication system in the V-High band, which is expected to see further growth as a means of video transmission during disasters.

2. Matters for which the report was requested

 (1) Technical requirements for additional allocation to the V-High band of the public broadband mobile communication system
 (2) Technical requirements for the introduction of a narrowband IoT communication system in the V-High band

3. Deadline for the report

 Around March 2025