US industry group the CBRS Alliance rebranded as the OnGo Alliance to reflect an expansion of its focus on 3.5GHz spectrum in the nation towards shared technologies and frequencies in other global markets.

Executive director Alan Ewing stated recent commercialisation of the 3.5GHz band in the US highlighted “the viability of spectrum sharing in other bands and geographies”.

“The responsible next step would be to recast the Alliance as an organisation dedicated to enabling 3GPP based technologies in shared spectrum.”

In the US, the 3.5GHz band is known as the Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS), and is shared between government and commercial users.

Unlicensed spectrum in the band was opened for commercial use in January 2020, and a sale of licensed airwaves closed in August 2020.

The group noted its work on 3.5GHz could be repurposed to form the basis of new specifications for other bands; help enable coexistence across a range of frequencies; and offer a starting point for deployment and operational best practices.

Ewing noted the Alliance had already been contacted by “international organisations that would like to engage”.