Spotlight on 3GPP Release 20 and the Bridge to 6G

The transition from 5G to 6G is now fully underway, and the latest InterDigital and ABI Research whitepaper provides a timely look at how the industry is preparing for this next step. While 5G has delivered widespread mobile broadband and created the foundation for services such as fixed wireless access, network slicing and low latency applications, its rollout also exposed important lessons. These lessons are now shaping 6G from the outset, ensuring that the new generation builds on practical operator needs rather than idealistic assumptions.

The importance of timing is clear. With 5G now mature in advanced markets and still expanding in developing regions, the industry wants to avoid repeating the complexities seen during the shift from NSA to SA. At the same time, the success of 5G in delivering reliable mobile broadband has created confidence that a more unified and streamlined approach will benefit 6G adoption. Release 20 becomes the bridge between these two generations, supporting both the final phase of 5G-Advanced and the early studies for 6G.

Standardisation for 6G is progressing at pace. 3GPP Release 19 is nearing completion and Release 20 began in mid 2025 with a dual role that covers enhancements for 5G Advanced and foundational studies for 6G. The complete normative work for 6G will sit in Release 21, expected around 2029. One notable change is the broader mix of contributors. While 5G development was shaped largely by established vendors, the 6G ecosystem now includes a wider set of companies across cloud, computing, devices and new industrial segments, which has created a more balanced global perspective.

The whitepaper highlights how the 6G pre-standards phase is filled with trials, testbeds and research initiatives. Many focus on integrated sensing and communication, resilience, sustainability and non-terrestrial networks. These early efforts will inform 3GPP’s decisions on architecture, interfaces and performance requirements. It is clear that sensing, AI integration and satellite connectivity are emerging as central building blocks for 6G, not optional add ons.

One of the most important shifts from 5G to 6G is the design philosophy. With 5G, the industry adopted a technology driven approach that created complexity, optionality and a difficult commercial route. There is now a more pragmatic mindset that emphasises simplicity, energy efficiency, better lifecycle economics and clearer monetisation paths. Operators want straightforward deployment models and day one value. As a result, 6G aims to introduce innovation while avoiding unnecessary fragmentation or features that lack a strong market case.

The design targets for 6G reflect this balance. A streamlined architecture, deep integration of AI, improved energy efficiency and a unified approach to cellular and satellite connectivity sit at the centre. The network will be more autonomous, data driven and capable of zero touch operation. A hundredfold improvement in energy efficiency per bit is an explicit ambition, alongside support for new frequency ranges that extend up to 24 GHz while retaining compatibility with existing bands.

The whitepaper also discusses how 6G will shape new service categories. Data management becomes a core capability, enabling networks to treat data flows according to their relevance, sensitivity or privacy. Integrated sensing will support applications in security, healthcare, automotive and smart living. 6G’s computing fabric will distribute intelligence across the network, supporting AI functions at the edge. Network slicing is positioned as a major enabler for both consumer and enterprise services, benefiting from the new architecture and performance capabilities.

On the device side, 6G aims to simplify and unify the air interface so that a single design can support everything from smartphones to low power IoT and satellite capable devices. For smartphones specifically, 6G is expected to improve battery life, support richer AI services and enable immersive applications such as avatar communication, volumetric video and advanced XR. For IoT, the goal is to support ten times more devices than 5G, with more efficient signalling and tighter integration with edge computing. For consumer electronics and vehicles, 6G will provide the connectivity and processing fabric needed for lighter AR headsets, safer mobility systems and intelligent homes that rely on embedded sensing.

The technical heart of the whitepaper focuses on 3GPP Release 20. Around half of the workload is dedicated to 5G Advanced system enhancements. These include architectural work for real time communications, energy efficient operations, new messaging capabilities for IoT and improvements to positioning and NTN access. Release 20 also expands the role of AI and machine learning across the radio interface, mobility management and energy optimisation. Early sensing studies will identify how the network can collect and expose sensing information to applications.

The 6G studies in Release 20 start to explore waveform assumptions, performance targets, architectural evolution from 5G Core to a future 6G Core and how to incorporate sensing, NTN and AI native operations from day one. A key ambition is the development of a unified air interface that can operate efficiently across FR1, FR2 and a new upper mid band candidate range between 7 and 24 GHz. This will allow operators to reuse existing spectrum while adding new capacity and sensing capabilities.

Release 20 represents a strategic turning point. It ties off 5G Advanced in a commercially meaningful way while setting the foundation for 6G standardisation. By the time Release 21 begins, the industry will have a clear set of validated use cases, architectural choices and performance expectations that align with IMT 2030. For operators, this means preparing networks for 6G by upgrading to 5G Advanced features that support energy efficiency, automation and improved coverage. For vendors, it means building credible demonstrations of early 6G concepts and contributing to a cleaner, more unified design than previous generations.

The road to 6G will span the rest of the decade, but Release 20 makes the direction clear. The next generation will be simpler, more efficient, more intelligent and more aligned with the real needs of operators, enterprises and consumers. This whitepaper provides a strong overview of how the transition is unfolding and why the industry is confident that 6G can deliver both evolutionary improvements and transformative new capabilities.

The whitepaper can be downloaded from here.

Related Posts: 

Posted by on

Comments

Post a Comment