Defining 6G: Challenges and Opportunities [From the Guest Editors]

The articles in this special section examine how sixth generation mobile communications (6G) will impact the transportation industry. A discussion is beginning within the wireless community as to whether there is a need for 6G and whether counting should stop at five, adopting the Microsoft Windows approach or, similarly, the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) approach. On the one hand, there are good reasons for this change in cellular communication, such as to allow for faster adoption of innovations. However, it is important to remember that the success of cellular communications is largely based on the famous Memorandum of Understanding signed in 1987 by 13 countries for the 2G Global System for Mobile Communications. What followed was a common and global standard that established the basis for a tremendous and coherent technology ecosystem that drove success, with interoperability and compatibility as the golden rule.