Global 4G market doubled in 2015, connections top 1bn

The number of 4G mobile connections worldwide has surpassed the one billion mark and is on track to account for a third of all mobile connections by 2020, according to a new study by the GSMA.

The 2016 global edition of the GSMA’s ‘Mobile Economy’ series of reports points to an accelerating technology shift to 3G/4G mobile broadband networks across both developed and developing markets, which is fuelling digital innovation, smartphone adoption and mobile data growth.

The study calculates that the mobile industry made a $3.1 trillion contribution to the world economy last year, equivalent to 4.2% of global GDP. This is predicted to rise to $3.7 trillion by 2020.

“Our new report reveals that mobile broadband is now a truly global phenomenon, extending high-speed connectivity and services to citizens in all corners of the world,” said Mats Granryd, director general of the GSMA.

“The unprecedented growth in mobile broadband last year is testament to the billions of dollars that mobile operators have invested in next-generation networks, services and spectrum in recent years. Mobile is now the most ubiquitous platform for people and businesses to connect and innovate in today’s digital economy.”

The number of 4G connections doubled in 2015, mainly due to the increase in 4G network deployments in the developing world. At the end of the year there were 451 live 4G (LTE) networks available in 151 countries — with almost half of these in the developing world.

This combination of increasing mobile broadband access and rising smartphone adoption is also contributing to an explosion in mobile data usage.

Smartphones accounted for 45% of mobile connections in 2015 (up from just 8% in 2010) and a further 2.6 billion smartphone connections are expected to be added over the next five years.

Mobile data volumes are forecast to grow at a CAGR of 49% over the next five years — a more than seven-fold increase — approaching 40 exabytes per month by 2020, and the equivalent to a global average of 7 gigabytes per subscriber per month.

The mobile industry also contributed $430 billion last year to public funding through various types of taxation. This public funding contribution excluded fees paid by operators for spectrum licences to deploy mobile broadband, which generated more than $90 billion for governments.

The new report ‘The Mobile Economy: 2016’ is authored by GSMA Intelligence, the research arm of the GSMA. To access the full report, go to http://gsmamobileeconomy.com/2016/global/.