News & Events

The 6G-MUSICAL and 6G-PATH projects successfully organised a joint webinar focused on the crucial relationship between research, standardisation, intellectual property (IP), and the future deployment of 6G technologies.

The webinar, titled “6G-MUSICAL_6G-PATH Standardisation Webinar”, brought together experts from both SNS JU-funded projects, as well as members of the research, innovation and standardisation communities, to discuss how research can translate into impactful standards and how IP strategies can support the adoption of emerging technologies.

With 46 registrations and 32 participants attending the live session, the webinar provided an interactive platform for knowledge exchange, covering key aspects of the standardisation ecosystem and the journey from research results to real-world implementation.

Opening the session, Gianna Avgousti (eBOS, 6G-MUSICAL) welcomed participants and introduced the objectives of the joint initiative, highlighting the importance of collaboration among SNS projects to accelerate the transition to future networks. She emphasised that successful 6G development requires not only technological breakthroughs but also effective pathways for standardisation, exploitation and innovation.

The webinar featured four insightful presentations from experts representing both projects:

1. “The Interface Between Standards and Patents”
   Presented by Eduardo Fullea Carrera (Telefónica, 6G-PATH), this session explored the fundamental concepts of patents and standards, and their interconnection through Standard Essential Patents (SEPs). The presentation provided valuable insights into how intellectual property rights are managed within standardisation organisations, including the role of licensing frameworks and the challenges surrounding SEP transparency, licensing and technology adoption.
2. “OCUDU: Open Source Implementation of Standards Technologies”
   Presented by Brendan McAuliffe (SRS, 6G-PATH), the session highlighted how open-source initiatives contribute to implementing telecommunications standards. The presentation focused on OCUDU, an open-source RAN stack, demonstrating how standard specifications are translated into software implementations and how open ecosystems can support interoperability, innovation and future 6G developments.
3. “O-CU-DU with DPDK on USRP – Vertical 4 Smart Cities: UC Cities-1 Connected and Sensing City” Presented by Pedro Valente Mateus (Instituto de Telecomunicações, 6G-PATH), this presentation showcased the practical deployment of O-CU-DU within the project’s Smart Cities use case. The session demonstrated how open-source technologies, combined with DPDK acceleration and USRP platforms, enable high-performance 5G deployments, highlighting real-world validation results, implementation benchmarks and the contribution of project developments back to the open-source community through official documentation.
4. “From Research to Standards: The 6G-MUSICAL Story”
   Presented by Professor Christos Masouros (University College London, 6G-MUSICAL), the final presentation showcased the journey of research outcomes from the project towards standardisation activities in Integrated Sensing and Communication (ISAC). The presentation highlighted 6G-MUSICAL contributions to ETSI ISAC activities, addressing topics such as security, privacy, advanced waveform design, sensing performance and future network-level challenges.

A dedicated Q&A session followed the presentations, allowing participants to further explore topics related to patent strategies, standardisation processes and the challenges of transforming research innovations into deployable solutions. Discussions highlighted the importance of early engagement with standardisation bodies and the role of collaboration between academia, industry and research projects.

The webinar demonstrated the value of cooperation across the SNS ecosystem, strengthened knowledge exchange among projects, and showcased how research initiatives help shape the standards and technologies that will define future 6G networks.

The full webinar recording will be made available soon. Stay tuned to the 6G-MUSICAL YouTube channel for the upcoming video release.