Ericsson
5G-enabled FWA devices go mainstream in US
Annual fixed wireless access CPE market survey finds shipments of FWA CPE expected to grow 23% to reach 37.5 million units in 2024, with India and North America driving business
Since the early days of the latest generation of mobile infrastructure, fixed wireless access (FWA) has been one of the fastest growing and most important use cases for 5G networks, and research from the GSA 4G/5G Fixed Wireless Access Forum is predicting that shipments of 5G FWA customer-premises equipment (CPE) are expected to grow 23% to reach 37.5 million units in 2024, meaning they would account for 42% of all FWA CPE shipments.
The GSA 4G/5G Fixed Wireless Access Forum was established in late 2020 by 14 initial partners and members, and now includes 56 members covering the majority of the infrastructure, chipset, module and CPE value chain for FWA. The association believes the findings of the 2024 GSA fixed wireless access CPE market survey “prove beyond doubt” that 5G FWA has hit the mainstream.
The survey results presented the aggregate answers of 30 CPE suppliers that together form a significant representation of the 3GPP-based 4G/5G FWA device market. All companies are members of the GSA 4G/5G FWA Forum, and were surveyed between May and June 2024 on a range of topics including shipments, market trends, form factors and device features, current and future.
The topline findings showed that after 5G-enabled FWA shipments reached 10.2 million in 2023, the growth of 5G FWA CPE shipments is expected to accelerate further, rising by eight percentage points compared with 34% in 2023. By comparison, 4G FWA CPE shipments fell 5% between 2022 and 2023, and the study expects less than half of respondents will introduce a new 4G CPE product this year. According to 40% of respondents, 5G CPE will reach price parity with its 4G counterpart by 2026, a year later than in last year’s survey.
At 60% of all such products, indoor CPE dominated shipment type, followed by battery-operated hot spots (25%) and outdoor CPE (15%). In outdoor CPE, flexible self-install devices are expected to grow from 1.6 million to 1.9 million, despite their share declining slightly from 36% to 34% of shipments between 2023 and 2024. Most respondents observed window-mounted CPE and self-installation apps growing; flexible indoor and outdoor CPE remaining flat; and hybrid fibre and DSL CPE in decline.
Three-fifths of shipments, six million units, in 2023 supported 5G standalone, and this figure is expected to grow in 2024, reaching 8.9 million units. There was also strong interest in RedCap, with 63% of respondents stating they will be introducing a 5G RedCap CPE in 2024.
Shipments of 5G devices with millimetre-wave capability rose 63% between 2022 and 2023, and are forecast to grow 22% by 2024, remaining at under 10% of all 5G shipments.
Read more about fixed wireless access
- 5G FWA on upward trajectory but global growth patchy: Study from GSMA predicts the number of 5G FWA connections across 70 countries will increase by 358% by 2030, representing an increase from 17.3 million connections to 79.2 million.
- T-Mobile bolsters connected workplace with FWA: Expanded fixed FWA offering combines Cradlepoint 5G networking solutions and T-Mobile 5G Business Internet to offer more choice to more customers.
- Fibre, FWA set the pace in fixed broadband growth: OECD research reveals that optical fibre and fixed wireless access are the two fastest growing fixed broadband technologies in countries that it covers, with their dynamism in stark contrast to the decline in DSL.
- Nokia adds 5G devices to FWA portfolio: Comms tech provider enhances 5G fixed wireless access portfolio with devices boasting faster speeds and better coverage using high gain antennas to avoid first wall attenuation and improve coverage to the cell edge.
Interestingly, the 5G FWA CPE market was shown to be widening its regional base. The study found various regions drove growth of 5G FWA shipments in 2023, in contrast with 2022, when most shipments were concentrated in North America. India is now contributing to this upward trend in shipments, with 86% of those reported being 5G-enabled, followed by North America (65%) and the rest of Asia-Pacific (39%).
“Not only has the growth in vendor shipments swung firmly behind 5G-enabled CPE devices, but operators are turning to FWA as the key driver for monetising their 5G network investments,” said John Yazlle, vice-chairman of the GSA 4G/5G FWA Forum.
“We see operators and vendors continue to work hand-in-hand on new innovations such as 5G standalone, Redcap, millimetre-wave and flexible self-install outdoor CPEs that will support the growth acceleration of 5G fixed wireless access services globally.”
