Global 5G Update - Q4 2022
Chetan Sharma
Wireless Industry Expert: Technology & Strategy, IP Expert, Author, Board Member, Advisor to CXOs, regulators, govts
Our final update of the year is out.
The global 5G subscriber base crossed 925M in Q4 2022 which is at a 3x faster pace compared to 4G global adoption. During Q4 2022, the global subscriber base grew 17% with China accounting for roughly 58% of the global subscriber base. From the start, we have been saying that Korea will lead in % penetration, China in total subscribers, and US will lead in revenue. All these nations will continue to lead in these respective categories. No major market will be able to catch any of the three leaders in their respective dimensions. We are starting to see the impact of 5G on postpaid phone ARPU across multiple nations now. US, China, South Korea and now Japan are the top four nations to pass the $2.5 Billion/quarter mark in 5G revenues. China Mobile has the greatest number of 5G global subs. Korea became the first country to cross the 50% 5G penetration amongst the smartphone consumer base. It is also the first country to have 5G contribute to over 75% of its mobile data traffic. US operators have been expanding their networks fairly rapidly as well. Hundreds of 5G handsets are entering into the ecosystem. However, the real competition will be in the new billion-dollar revenue streams that get created. For ecosystem players who seek to develop a platform based on 5G, the work is just starting.
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Global 5G Update provides strategic insights and a snapshot of the salient points on 5G progress in Q4 2022: