Although this year will be forever marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, in the technology market it will also be marked by 5G networks and their expansion. In fact, the new Ericsson Mobility Report study on mobile networks worldwide certifies that 5G will be available to more than one billion people around the world.
The expansion of 5G , far from being affected by the pandemic, is advancing at such a speed that it is the network that is expanding the fastest, much more than 4G did at the time. Something that along with the arrival of affordable mobile phones compatible with this connectivity will undoubtedly accelerate adoption.
More than 200 million 5G subscribers by the end of 2020
That is the forecast shown in the latest edition of the Ericsson Mobility Report in November. In it, we have been able to verify the good health of 5G networks around the world. This report predicts that 15% of the world’s population will have access to 5G network coverage in 2020 , with subscriptions to these networks reaching 220 million. Nothing to do with what Ericsson predicts for the year 2026 , in which it predicts that 5G networks will be within the reach of 3.5 billion subscribers, with 60% of the world’s population having access to this connectivity technology.
The large increase in 5G subscribers before the end of 2020 is mainly due to the good pace that the adoption of the new 5G technology is having in China , which already accounts for 11% of mobile subscriptions, which is undoubtedly a big boost. In China, there have been several factors for this rapid increase in demand for 5G, such as the great competition between operators at the national level to offer it, as well as the massive launch of new mobiles compatible with it and with increasingly affordable prices. In North America, by contrast, it is expected that before the end of 2020, 5G adoption of 4% of mobile users will be reached. According to Ericsson, by 2026 80% of mobile contracts in the United States are expected to be 5G .
The pandemic highlights the importance of 5G
Despite the difficult year 2020 that is being experienced at all levels, the pandemic has highlighted the need to adopt technologies such as 5G as soon as possible, improving quality connectivity in remote work environments, which are now much more numerous as consequence of social distancing and confinement. Fredrik Jejdling , Executive Vice President and Director of Networks at Ericsson, said that “This year, society has taken a great leap towards digitization . The pandemic has highlighted the impact that connectivity has on our lives and has acted as a catalyst for a fast change that is clearly reflected in this latest edition of the Ericsson Mobility Report. ”
To which he added that ” 5G is entering the next stage , with new devices and applications that take full advantage of the benefits it provides, while service providers continue to develop 5G. Mobile networks are a critical infrastructure for many aspects. of everyday life and 5G will be key to future economic prosperity. ”
IOT and Gaming, future engines of 5G
But not only mobile contracts will 5G live , because there are two other segments where the room for improvement is enormous. One of them is the IOT , and not the one that will connect the Internet of Things devices in our home, but above all the critical infrastructures and professional fields in which an instant connection of the highest quality is necessary to reduce to nothing latency between people thousands of kilometers from each other.
In the case of games, it is expected that the power and speed of 5G networks can equate mobile games at the same level that we can expect from an entire console or PC with streaming games.
