STOCKHOLM – Telecom technology maker Ericsson said today it expects the number of 5G subscriptions to top 2.6 billion, globally, within the next six years
The forecast is included in the November 2019 edition of the Ericson Mobility Report, alongside a range of other forecasts with an end-of-2025 timeline and communications service provider insights.
The report says 5G will cover up to 65% of the world’s population by the end of 2025 and handle 45% of global mobile data traffic. Also by then, smartphone users will consume a global average of 24 GB per month, as compared to a global average of 7.2 GB currently, “as video usage increases and new services become available,” says the report.
The total number of cellular IoT connections is estimated at five billion by the end of 2025, up from 1.3 billion by end of 2019, says the company.
South Korea has the 5G lead right now and Ericsson says more than three million 5G subscriptions were collectively recorded by the country’s service providers by the end of September 2019.
China’s launch of 5G in late October has also led to an update of the estimated 5G subscriptions for the end of 2019, from 10 million to 13 million, adds the report.
“It is encouraging to see that 5G now has broad support from almost all device makers. In 2020, 5G-compatible devices will enter the volume market, which will scale up 5G adoption,” said Fredrik Jejdling, Ericsson’s executive vice president and head of networks. “The question is no longer if, but how quickly we can convert use cases into relevant applications for consumers and enterprises. With 4G remaining a strong connectivity enabler in many parts of the world, modernizing networks is also key to this technological change we’re going through.”
Given its current momentum, 5G subscription uptake is expected to be significantly faster than that of LTE, says Ericsson. The most rapid uptake is expected in North America with 74% of mobile subscriptions in the region forecast to be 5G by the end of 2025. Northeast Asia is expected to follow at 56%, with Europe at 55%.
