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High speed, affordable 5G data is sweeping across the world – changing the way we work and play. But how widespread is advanced mobile connectivity, and how are consumers using it? Let’s review the data behind the revolution…

 

In one sense, 5G is just the latest generation of mobile network tech. It's part of a story that began with the launch of 1G in 1979 in Tokyo. 

But actually, 5G is different. 

Advanced ‘standalone 5G’ networks operate independently of existing 4G infrastructure. They replace many physical components with cloud-hosted software and use a dedicated 5G core to manage all traffic and data. 

This means that 5G SA is not bound by the limitations of legacy technology. The end result is a huge leap in performance, in terms of speed, latency and reach.

In optimum conditions 5G download speeds can achieve 10 gigabits per second. That’s up to 100 times faster than 4G. Even today, with 5G technology at the early stage of its evolution, telco trade body GSMA says average 5G download speeds were around 230 Mbps by the end of 2023 – a more than fivefold increase on 4G.

In terms of latency, 5G also represents a considerable upgrade. For 4G, latency is on average 200 milliseconds. For 5G? As low as 1 millisecond. 

And then there's reach. 5G can support 1 million devices for every square kilometre (0.386 square miles). And it can penetrate into remote spaces too. 

All of these advances promise to bring about a connectivity revolution. For consumers, the benefits are obvious. 5G will bring always-on lightning-fast video to everyone, with all the entertainment and productivity gains one can imagine.

For enterprises, 5G will accelerate the long-promised Internet of Things revolution. Innovative companies in healthcare, finance, media and more will be able to build new products around hi-speed ubiquitous connectivity.

On the flipside, a fast software-based telco network will invariably be a target for fraudsters and saboteurs. It’s critical that stakeholders develop strong defences against the many new types of attack.

So, this is the connectivity revolution we are heading towards. 

But how do things stand now? And how quickly will people and businesses embrace the exciting future of high-speed mobile connectivity?

Let's review the latest data.

Global mobile connectivity

58 percent of people use the mobile internet

By the end of 2023, GSMA estimated that 5.6 billion people (69 percent of the global population) were subscribed to a mobile service. The rate is projected to increase to 6.3 billion by 2030, which is 74 percent of the global population.

Mobile internet penetration is growing even faster. By end 2023, 4.7 billion people - 58 percent of the world - used the mobile internet. However, of the 3.4 billion people who remain unconnected, 3 billion live in an area which is connected. GSMA concludes the remaining gap is therefore to do with affordability and literacy/digital skills rather than availability.

Global mobile internet connectivity: change over time

                   % of global population

2020        52
2021        55
2022        57
2023        58    

Source: GSMA
 

Global mobile internet data

145 exabytes flows across mobile networks every month

The rate of growth of mobile internet traffic started spiraling in the last decade, and it hasn't slowed down since. According to Ericsson, the world consumed around 10 exabytes of data in Q1 2017. By Q1 2024 data traffic reached an astonishing 145 EB.

Needless to say, it is not slowing down. The roll out of 5G will drive consumption of video and other bandwidth-hungry applications among consumers and business (at the end of 2023, video traffic accounted for 73 percent of all mobile data traffic.) Then there's fixed wireless access, which is expected to replace wi-fi in millions of homes and enterprises. 

These factors are expected to grow total global mobile data traffic to 466 EB per month by 2029. Meanwhile 5G’s share of mobile data traffic was 25 percent at the end of 2023 but should grow to around 75 percent by 2029.

Mobile lifestyles

Consumers in mobile-first markets spend more than 5 hours a day on Mobile

The mobile used to be seen as a ‘second screen’. No longer. According to Sensor Tower, consumers in many markets typically spend four hours a day on apps or the mobile internet. In one market – Indonesia – it’s more than six hours.

            
                                 Hours a day on mobile

Indonesia                  6.05
Thailand                     5.64
Argentina                  5.33
Saudi Arabia            5.28
Brazil                            5.02
India                             4.77
Mexico                        4.70
Singapore                  4.51
South Korea              4.51
Turkey                          4.45
United States           4.34
United Kingdom     3.81
Canada                       3.80
Japan                           3.77
Italy                              3.76
China                          3.72
Spain                          3.64
France                        3.61
Germany                   3.42
Australia                    3.35

Source: Sensor Tower

5G adoption

5.5 billion consumers could be on 5G by 2030

Data from GSMA Intelligence says 5G has been the fastest mobile generation rollout to date, with 1.6 billion connections at the end of 2023. GSMA estimates there will be 5.5 billion 5G subscribers by 2030 – that’s 56 percent of the total.

Mobile subscription by network type

                       total      5G

2020        7.9bn        160m
2021        8.1bn          530m
2022        8.3bn        999m
2023        8.5bn        1.6bn
2024        8.6bn        2.1bn
2025        8.8bn        2.8bn
2026        8.9bn        3.4bn
2027        9bn            4bn    
2028        9.1bn        4.8bn
2029        9.25bn    5.6bn

Source: Ericsson/GSMA

5G Mobile subscriptions by region

% of population 

                                                                 2023        2029            

Sub Saharan Africa                              1.1           27.6
South East Asia and Oceania         5.2         43.3
Central and Eastern Europe            2.4         49.4
Middle East and North Africa        4.8         50.4
Latin America                                        4.6          51.6
India Nepal and Bhutan                 10.1          65.3
North east Asia                                   41.2         79.7
Western Europe                                 26.1         86.1
Gulf                                                          55.1         89.2
North America                                    58.6        89.9

Source: Ericsson

Global e-commerce activity

The market for e-commerce stands at more than $6.1 trillion

All over the world, people have switched from desktop to mobile as their primary connectivity channel. This migration has changed the fundamentals of commerce. Today, billions of consumers shop in apps or the mobile web and use mobile wallets to check out. 

As a result, e-commerce is growing fast, and closing the gap with physical 'POS' shopping. Indeed, according to the WorldPay Global Payments Report 2024, global e-commerce is now growing at more than twice the rate of global POS value.

Meanwhile eMarketer estimates the current value of ecommerce at more than $6.1 trillion and expects revenues to beat $8 trillion by 2027. It forecasts that e-commerce as a percentage of all commerce will hit 23 percent by 2027.

E-commerce market value ($ trillion)

                   $trn        % or all retail sales

2021        4.98        18.9
2022        5.31        18.9
2023        5.78        19.5
2024        6.33        20.3
2025        6.87        21.2
2026        7.46        22.2
2027        8.03        23.0

Source: eMarketer

E-commerce payment types

Digital wallets are the first choice of online consumers 

It's little surprise to see digital wallets emerge as the first choice of consumers when making e-commerce payments. These wallets are embedded in the smartphone, so they are highly intuitive to use. WorldPay's report estimates that they accounted for 50 percent of global transaction
value in 2023. They could hit 61 percent by 2027.

Credit and debit cards will see their shares fall (though this fall is misleading, since consumers will merely re-locate their cards in wallets).

E-commerce transactions by payment type (% of value)

                                              2023    2027

Digital Wallets                     50    61
Credit cards                          22     15
Debit                                        12       8
Account to Account           7        8
Buy now pay later               5        5
Cash on delivery                  2        1
Prepaid cards                        1         1

Source: WorldPay 

 

The data above reveals that digital transformation is unstoppable. Global consumers in many markets spend more than five hours a day in apps or on the mobile internet. As a consequence, we can be confident that digital sectors such as mobile commerce, telemedicine, online banking and streaming video will continue to grow strongly. 

However, the new connected lifestyles will also introduce new vulnerabilities. More traffic means more sensitive data flowing across the network. This widens the attack surface for cybercriminals. 

People and organisations must be vigilant. They must modify their behaviour to deal with the new threats, and maintain the highest levels of technical security to build a future we can all trust.

 

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