5G and urban amenity: regulatory trends and local government responses around small cell deployment

Purpose As part of the 5G rollout, small cell base stations will be deployed across cities. This paper aims to identify an international effort to remove regulatory barriers around deployment and outline emerging strategies Australian local governments are developing to ensure urban amenity in a deregulatory context. Design/methodology/approach This paper analyses existing legislation, policy frameworks and grey literature and has conducted eight interviews with participants from the local government sector. Findings This paper identifies a global deregulatory trend around small cell deployment and that councils are trying to renegotiate their relationship with telecommunications carriers as 5G is rolled out. Three strategies are identified: the design and installation of smart poles, network sharing and partnerships. Originality/value This research contributes to scholarship focused on the 5G rollout and offers one of the first accounts of the emerging tensions between regulatory frameworks, commercial imperatives and municipal authorities, identifying urban amenity as a key area of concern.