While the WBA has been driving the adoption of WI-FI 6 even they have been surprised by the survey’s findings, which suggest that Wi-Fi 6 will very quickly become part of the landscape for service providers, enterprises and consumers.
Key findings from the survey include:
- 78 per cent of those surveyed find the 6 GHz extension to be very important or important to their current or future network strategy.
- The role of Wi-Fi or unlicensed spectrum was the most important factor to consider in terms of strategy for network evolution and 5G, for about half of respondents.
- ·Next Generation Hotspot (NGH)/Passpoint continues to gain in popularity, with 40 per cent of those surveyed saying they would incorporate the Wi-Fi roaming technology before the end of 2020.
- A further 37 per cent plan to implement the technology, but have not set a firm date.
- Within three years, IoT and vertical industry applications are expected to become the leading revenue driver for Wi-Fi, with 45 per cent placing it in their top three expected revenue sources.
When it comes to applications they range from in-flight Wi-Fi to multi-faceted smart city projects.
2020 looks set to become the breakout year for Wi-Fi 6, in what is fast becoming one of the most dynamic periods anyone involved with Wi-Fi has seen.
For a technology that has been around for over 20 years it looks very much like Wi-Fi platforms will help to drive a whole new generation of use cases and revenues.
