The latest edition of the Ericsson Mobility Report published in June 2024 (Ericsson Mobility Report June 2024) highlights notable growth in 5G subscriptions and applications, as well as an increase in fixed wireless access (FWA) globally. Furthermore, forecasts indicate that this trend will not only continue the same, but will gradually increase.
Sustained growth of 5G subscriptions
This report adjusts projections for the period until 2029anticipating a significant increase in 5G mobile subscriptions globally. According to published data, approximately 160 million 5G subscriptions were added in the first three months of 2024, bringing the total to more than 1.7 billion. Nearly 600 million new subscriptions are expected to be added by the end of 2024.
Ericsson estimates that 5G population coverage – outside mainland China – will double, rising from 40% at the end of 2023 to 80% by the end of 2029. It is expected that by 2029, 5G will represent approximately 60% of all mobile subscriptions. This makes it very clear that the commitment by all market players is for this type of connectivity.
Projections established by the Ericsson report
The data provided projects that North America will maintain the highest 5G penetration in 2029 at 90%, followed by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) at 89% and Western Europe with 86%. Something that is also important is that the access times achieved by users in the 5G medium band achieve a content access time of less than 1.5 seconds, according to the published report, significantly exceeding the low 5G band (67% ) and 4G (38%). Therefore, the progress is positive.
Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) is also evolving
This option continues to gain ground as a 5G application for communication service providers (CSPs) globally. According to the report, the number of suppliers offering FWA services is growing has increased significantly in the last year. Of the 310 analyzed globally, 241 offered FWA services in April 2024 – approximately 53% of these include a 5G offer.
The advanced capabilities of this type of access, including higher speed, data handling, and low latency, are making speed-based tariff plans increasingly attractive. This trend has led to a nearly 50% growth in the number of service providers offering 5G FWA speed-based tariffs in the past year, with 40% of the total now implementing these plans.
Greater commitment to independent 5G
Ericsson in its report warns of the need to continue with the deployments of standalone 5G networks (SA) and the additional densification of mid-band sites for “fully realize the potential of 5G”. Although around 300 service providers have launched commercial 5G services, most of these are still non-standalone networks anchored to the older 4G core. Therefore, this is an area that needs to change to optimize future progress.
The company also indicated that many devices already offer support for 5G network slicing. “Starting with Android 13 and iOS 17, developers can include features and capabilities in their apps to align with certain network characteristics (such as lower latency or higher bandwidth) offered by network slices provisioned by the service provider.”, states the report.
It is clear that the Ericsson Mobility Report June 2024 highlights the sustained growth of 5G subscriptions and the growing relevance of FWA as a key player in the market, while highlighting the need for greater deployment of standalone 5G networks to take full advantage of the capabilities of this technology.
Follow all the information Five days in Facebook, X and Linkedinor in our newsletter Five Day Agenda
