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Asia-Pacific to lead 5G technology adoption to 2024
GlobalData analysis predicts that in the 5G era, Asia will lead the field and will hold half of 5G subscriptions globally by 2024
New research from tech analyst GlobalData has identified the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region as the standard-bearer for 5G technology adoption with 1.14 billion subscribers, forecasting it to account for 65% of global 5G subscriptions by 2024.
The analyst’s Asia Pacific mobile broadband forecast pack reveals that APAC will be the largest region for 5G adoption with a 44% share, followed by North America with 32%, in terms of revenue, in 2024.
The survey noted that those countries that have early 5G launches are likely to lead mobile data traffic growth over the forecast period. The leading 5G countries in APAC will be South Korea, China, Japan and Australia. The average monthly data usage of consumers in the region is expected to rise from 5GB in 2019 to 11GB in 2024, when the global average monthly data usage is expected to be 9.98GB.
However, GlobalData cautions that the impact of 5G technologies will not be seen much in 2020 because operators and suppliers are still working on roll-out plans. It calculates that the share of 4G technology in the total APAC telecom market will increase from 6.4% in 2014 to 49% in 2018. Similarly, 5G will reach 25-30% of the APAC telecom market by 2024.
It also predicts that the growth rate of 5G will be comparatively high because of the number of use cases, such as the internet of things (IoT) and enhanced mobile broadband services.
“With the help of low latency, high reliability and greater throughput, 5G is going to create demand and opportunities through platforms such as IoT, virtual reality and robotics,” said Ramya Sindhu Jetty, research analyst, telecom market data and intelligence, at GlobalData.
“There is a higher probability that 5G is embraced in countries where 4G is the existing driving technology. Though various 5G networks are going live in 2020, 5G smartphone sales will be moderate due to the initial high cost and lack of network coverage at national level. 5G wireless networks are expected to influence not only the consumer field, but also segments like automobiles, IoT and manufacturing. Operators such as China Telecom are looking to create a robust ecosystem of cloud, AI [artificial intelligence] and 5G.”
Read more about 5G
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- 5G’s network success more or less guaranteed, but same can’t be said for 5G smartphones in short term as study finds only 30-40% of those in major markets such as the US, Europe and Australia likely to result in upgrades.
- Six months in, and after major operators roll out coverage with great fanfare and suitable devices in their branded stores, confusion exists in the US 5G arena.
- China’s national radio and TV network operator becomes the fourth company to offer 5G services in the country, serving the cities of Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Shenzhen.
