Ericsson Mobility Report: times and ways of 5G

By the end of 2020, one billion people will have 5G and Covid coverage, for the sake of conspiracy theorists who, despite any scientific evidence, still try to combine the two in a cause-consequence relationship. The reality, as is well known, is that the only link between the two entities lies in the fact that the pandemic has slowed the development path of the new networks. Despite this, the road seems to be marked: according to what was published in the new Ericsson Mobility Report, in fact, 220 million 5G subscriptions are expected worldwide by the end of 2020, of which 175 million in China alone (80% of the total).

2026: 5G will be global standard

3.5 billion subscriptions are expected by the end of 2026, which will have definitively made 5G the new global connectivity standard as capable of over 50% of mobile data traffic.

2020 will probably be remembered as the year in which society as a whole took a huge step towards digitization as a result of the pandemic, also in cultural terms. If it is true that the strategic role of connectivity, which emerged even more clearly during the months of the lockdown, has never been questioned, it is now necessary to work to eliminate any barrier and uncertainty that prevents operators from being able to invest massively and in time. fast on 5G networks. The success of 5G will be measured by the impact that the adoption of this technology will have in terms of benefits for people and businesses, of positive effects on the economic recovery and digital transformation of the country and on the environment

Emanuele Iannetti, Chief Executive Officer of Ericsson in Italy

According to Ericsson, a decisive step in this development path will be the introduction of IoT critical applications: at that point, many areas will be able to leverage 5G to carry out time-critical operations that require minimal latency and 5G experience will really be able to make a difference far beyond the speed and amount of bandwidth available.

In Europe, 5G will reach 1% of the mobile market by the end of 2020: some countries are now underway, others instead they pay for the delays of the frequency assignment auctions. The vicissitudes of 2020, however, have accelerated the digitalization front, thus creating the basis for a more diligent transition to 5G thanks to a greater awareness of how important the connection becomes for any type of business. According to Ericsson's Executive Vice President and Head of Networks, in fact, “The pandemic highlighted the impact of connectivity on our lives and acted as a catalyst for rapid change, which is clearly visible in this latest edition of the Mobility Report“.

The report is available here.

Source: Ericsson Mobility Report