Latin America. 5G has gained significant momentum over the past year and is already available in 24 markets around the world, supported by a growing list of 5G devices and growing awareness among consumers.
According to the 2020 global edition of the GSMA's flagship report series, "Mobile Economy", 46 operators in 24 markets had launched commercial 5G networks as of 30 January 2020. One in five mobile connections is expected to run on 5G networks by 2025.
"Global mobile operator investment projected for the next few years will exceed one trillion dollars, focused on deploying advanced networks to serve both consumers and businesses," said Mats Granryd, Director General, GSMA. "In the last 12 months, we saw how 'the 5G craze' has become a reality: millions of consumers are already migrating to 5G, while companies are beginning to embrace the technical possibilities enabled by the next generation such as network slicing, edge computing and low-latency services."
The new report reveals:
5G has arrived, but 4G is still king: 4G was the dominant mobile technology in the world last year, accounting for more than half (52 percent) of global connections. Despite the emergence of 5G, 4G will continue to grow in the coming years, reaching 56 percent of connections by 2025.
The industry is making a strong investment in 5G: Mobile operators are expected to invest $1.1 trillion in CAPEX globally between 2020 and 2025; about 80 percent will be on 5G networks.
The smartphone is becoming ubiquitous: Smartphones are projected to account for four out of five connections by 2025, up from 65 percent in 2019.
The Internet of Things (IoT) will be an integral part of the 5G era: Between 2019 and 2025, the number of global IoT connections will more than double to nearly 25 billion, while global IoT revenue will triple to $1.1 trillion.
Subscriber growth is slowing, but the industry has yet to connect more people: The number of unique mobile subscribers² at the end of last year was 5.2 billion (67 percent of the population) and is estimated to grow to 5.8 billion by 2025 (70 percent).
Half the planet is connected to mobile internet: Nearly half of the world's population (3.8 billion people) is now a mobile internet user, and 61 percent (5 billion) will be reached by 2025.
5G will add $2.2 trillion to the global economy over the next 14 years
According to the published report, mobile technologies and services generated 4.7 percent of GDP globally last year, a contribution that amounted to US$ 4.1 trillion of economic value added³. This contribution is projected to grow to $4.9 trillion (4.9 percent of GDP) by 2024, as countries around the world increasingly benefit from improvements in productivity and efficiency brought about by increased utilization of mobile services. The mobile ecosystem was responsible for more than 30 million jobs in 2019 (directly and indirectly). It made a substantial contribution to public sector financing, with $490 billion raised through general taxes.
5G is expected to contribute $2.2 trillion to the global economy by 2034, with key industries such as production, utilities, and professional and financial services among the biggest beneficiaries of the new technology.
The new report "The Mobile Economy 2020" was prepared by GSMA Intelligence, the research and consulting arm of the GSMA. To access the full report and related infographics, visit: www.gsma.com/mobileeconomy/
