Upper 6 GHz fixed links: clearance and cost for incumbent users
In short: Upper 6 GHz fixed links in the busiest urban areas face revocation on five years’ notice as Ofcom clears 6585 to 7125 MHz for mobile. Around 206 links held by some 20 licensees are in scope, alongside a slice of programme-making spectrum and a cap to protect radio astronomy. Relocation costs fall on the licensee. The consultation closes at 5pm on 6 July 2026.
If a business holds a fixed microwave link in the upper 6 GHz band, or runs wireless cameras and microphones in the programme-making spectrum at the top of it, the frequencies it depends on are being reorganised to make room for mobile. The incumbent does not get to stay in the busiest areas, and Ofcom expects it to fund its own move. That is the practical effect of Ofcom’s latest 6 GHz consultation, which sets out how legacy users will be cleared from high-density urban areas so that mobile operators can deploy there. It was published on 13 April 2026, revised on 27 May 2026, and closes at 5pm on 6 July 2026.
The consultation is the incumbent-facing half of a programme whose other half, the framework deciding where mobile operators can deploy, we covered in our earlier note on how Ofcom defines high-density areas for Upper 6 GHz. This piece looks at what the same proposals mean for the fixed-link, programme-making and radio astronomy users already in the band.
Key findings (Ofcom Upper 6 GHz consultation)
- The upper 540 MHz of the band (6585 to 7125 MHz) is reserved as mobile priority; the lower 160 MHz (6425 to 6585 MHz) is Wi-Fi priority. Source: Ofcom January 2026 statement.
- Around 206 fixed links, held by roughly 20 licensees, sit inside the proposed high-density areas and face revocation on five years’ notice. All other links in the band are unaffected. Source: Ofcom consultation, corrected 27 May 2026.
- The 7110 to 7125 MHz block is to be removed from the 7 GHz Programme Making and Special Events (PMSE) allocation on five years’ notice. Source: Ofcom consultation.
- Mobile deployments must not exceed an interference level of minus 159 dBm/50kHz across 6650 to 6675.2 MHz, to protect radio astronomy at six active sites. Source: Ofcom consultation.
- The cost of moving out of the band falls on the fixed-link licensee or user. Source: Ofcom consultation.
| Incumbent | What Ofcom proposes | Notice | Who bears the cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fixed links (around 206 links, about 20 licensees) | Revoke the links incompatible with mobile in high-density areas; all other links unaffected; band stays open to compatible new links longer term | Five years (a licence term) | Licensee or user |
| PMSE (7110 to 7125 MHz) | Remove the 15 MHz from the 7 GHz PMSE allocation; capacity remains elsewhere in the 7 GHz band except for a few major events | Five years (a policy commitment) | PMSE users, relocating within remaining spectrum |
| Radio astronomy (six sites) | Interference cap of minus 159 dBm/50kHz at 6650 to 6675.2 MHz | Ongoing protection | Protected; no displacement |
How Ofcom can clear Upper 6 GHz fixed links
Ofcom’s power to clear the band comes from the Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006 (WTA 2006) and Part 2 of the Communications Act 2003 (CA 2003). Section 8 WTA 2006 makes it unlawful to use wireless telegraphy apparatus without a licence. Fixed links and programme-making equipment in the band hold individual licences under that section.
The revocation machinery sits in Schedule 1 to WTA 2006. Paragraph 6 lets Ofcom revoke a licence or vary its terms by written notice. Paragraph 6A says Ofcom may not do so unless the revocation or variation is objectively justifiable. Paragraph 7 sets the procedure: Ofcom must give the licensee its reasons and a period to make representations, with a statutory floor of 30 days. Paragraph 8 then lets Ofcom write terms into a licence that restrict its own power to revoke, and this is where the five-year notice in fixed-link licences lives. The five years is therefore a contractual protection in the licence, not a minimum set by the Act.
Over all of this sits Ofcom’s general duty in section 3 CA 2003. Section 3(2)(a) requires Ofcom to secure the optimal use of the spectrum. Section 3(4)(f) requires it to have regard to the different needs and interests of everyone who may want to use the spectrum, which includes the incumbents it now proposes to move. The clearance is an exercise in balancing those duties, not a free hand.
What the consultation does to Upper 6 GHz fixed links and other incumbents
Ofcom proposes to clear incompatible fixed links out of the high-density areas on five years’ notice. Around 206 links, held by roughly 20 licensees, sit in the affected footprint; the original April list gave 180 before a correction on 27 May 2026 added the omitted links. Every link outside the high-density areas stays where it is, and Ofcom proposes to keep the band open to new fixed links in the longer term where they are compatible with mobile use.
The legal mechanism is the standard one. Ofcom invokes the five-year notice term, then runs the Schedule 1 paragraph 7 procedure, and must satisfy the paragraph 6A objectively-justifiable test against its section 3 duties. The high-density-area approach mirrors the millimetre wave award, where Ofcom cleared 40 GHz fixed links to open dense urban areas to mobile. Ofcom has cleared a band this way before, and incumbents should read the proposal in that light.
Programme-making spectrum is treated differently. Ofcom proposes to withdraw the 7110 to 7125 MHz block from the 7 GHz PMSE allocation, again on five years’ notice. PMSE licences do not normally carry a five-year notice term, so the five years here rests on Ofcom’s earlier policy commitments rather than a licence condition. Ofcom’s position is that the remaining 7 GHz spectrum can absorb demand except for a small number of major events, which it will deal with separately. Radio astronomy keeps its protection through a hard interference cap rather than a relocation, reflecting that radio telescopes cannot simply move frequency.
Who is affected and who pays
The licensees most exposed are the operators that built microwave backhaul and private links in the band: utilities, transport networks, broadcasters and some mobile and fixed operators. For them the consultation is not an abstract spectrum debate. It is a five-year countdown to move traffic onto another band or onto fibre, and Ofcom’s settled position is that the cost of moving falls on the licensee, not on the mobile operators who gain the cleared spectrum. There is no compensation mechanism in the WTA 2006 for revocation on spectrum-management grounds.
For mobile network operators the proposal removes a deployment constraint in exactly the locations where Upper 6 GHz capacity is most valuable. For investors in digital infrastructure, a target that relies on 6 GHz fixed links inside a candidate high-density area carries a migration cost and a five-year clock that belong in the diligence model. If you are assessing where a planned deployment or a target’s links sit against the proposed high-density areas, see our guidance on regulatory perimeter and market entry and on regulatory due diligence. The consultation period, which closes on 6 July 2026, is also the window in which the proposed area boundaries and the revocation list can be tested.
Viewpoint
Ofcom has the power to do this. The revocation power in Schedule 1 WTA 2006 is well established, and the millimetre wave award already showed Ofcom clearing incumbents to make room for high-density mobile. The real issue is the cost allocation. Ofcom repeats its settled position that the displaced licensee pays to move. For a utility or transport operator that built a microwave network as critical infrastructure, that is a real balance-sheet item with no offsetting payment, and the paragraph 6A objectively-justifiable test is the place where a licensee can press whether the clearance of its particular link is proportionate.
Frequently asked questions
Can Ofcom revoke a fixed-link licence in the 6 GHz band?
Yes. Paragraph 6 of Schedule 1 to the Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006 lets Ofcom revoke a wireless telegraphy licence or vary its terms by written notice. The revocation must be objectively justifiable under paragraph 6A, and Ofcom must follow the paragraph 7 procedure of giving reasons and a period for representations. The whole exercise is constrained by Ofcom’s optimal-use duty under section 3 CA 2003.
How much notice will Upper 6 GHz fixed links licensees get?
Five years. The five-year notice is a term in the fixed-link licences, preserved under paragraph 8 of Schedule 1, rather than a minimum set by the Act. The statutory minimum for making representations on a proposed revocation is 30 days under paragraph 7.
Who pays to relocate the affected links?
Ofcom’s current position is that the cost of moving out of the band falls on the fixed-link licensee or user. There is no compensation mechanism in the Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006 for revocation on spectrum-management grounds.
Which fixed links are affected?
Around 206 links, held by roughly 20 licensees, that sit inside the proposed high-density areas and are incompatible with mobile deployment there. Links outside those areas are unaffected, and the band is to stay open to new compatible links in the longer term.
What happens to PMSE in the 7 GHz band?
Ofcom proposes to remove the 7110 to 7125 MHz block from the 7 GHz PMSE allocation on five years’ notice. It considers that the rest of the 7 GHz band can meet PMSE demand except for a small number of major events, which it will address separately.
If your business holds fixed links or PMSE authorisations in the 6 or 7 GHz band, or is acquiring infrastructure that depends on them, the consultation period is the moment to test your position. To discuss what the proposals mean for your spectrum, contact Rob Bratby at Bratby Law.
