Hotly anticipated fifth generation mobile telecoms technology, known as 5G, has been touted as a step-change in mobile networking - promising exponentially faster download speeds, data-sharing in real time and more overall capacity in the network.
At last, despite delays and hiccups marring the roll out in both the US and parts of Europe, 5G has finally arrived. South Korea, the US and China are leading the charge with around 80 – 90% population coverage. Europe is trailing behind, but outlier Switzerland has also reached 90%.
Though challenges persist for deployment globally, mobile network operators and technology providers are optimistic as ever for the future of 5G. The 2021 Ericsson Mobility Report predicts 5G will account for nearly half of all mobile subscriptions by 2027, when they are expected to reach 4.4 billion. This is up from an estimated 660m last year. Global 4G population coverage was over 80% at the end of 2020.