Ericsson raises global 5G subscriptions forecast by 27%

In its latest mobility report, Ericsson has upped its forecast for global 5G subscriptions significantly thanks to everyone getting their act together quicker than it expected.

Ericsson now reckons global 5G subscriptions will hit 1.9 billion by 2024, 27% up from its November forecast of 1.5 billion. This is a response to the number of operators around the world that have flicked the 5G switch earlier than even Ericsson, which must have a fair bit of visibility into these things, anticipated. The company is revising a bunch of other expectations accordingly.

“5G is definitely taking off and at a rapid pace,” said Fredrik Jejdling, Head of Networks at Ericsson. “This reflects the service providers’ and consumers’ enthusiasm for the technology. 5G will have positive impact on people’s lives and businesses, realizing gains beyond the IoT and the Fourth Industrial Revolution. However, the full benefits of 5G can only be reaped with the establishment of a solid ecosystem in which technology, regulatory, security, and industry partners all have a part to play.”

Here are a bunch of charts taken from the report. In the first you can see how pretty much all mobile subscriptions are expected to be driven by 5G. The second shows the regional split, with North America expected to lead the way in terms of 5G subscriptions, while the third shows how smartphone subscriptions are expected to evolve between now and 2024. Lastly we have a look at the types of devices that will be launched to support the various 5G frequency bands.