Mobile data traffic increased almost 300-fold over 10 years: Ericsson

Ericsson global insights reveal an almost 300-fold increase in mobile data traffic since 2011.

The report looks back at some of the key trends and events that have shaped the last decade, as well as revealing the latest forecasts toward 2027.

The premise that 5G will become the fastest deployed mobile generation to date has been enhanced with an updated estimate of close to 660 million 5G subscriptions by the end of this year. The increase is due to stronger than expected demand in China and North America, driven in part by decreasing prices of 5G devices. There was also a net addition of 98 million 5G subscriptions globally in Q3 2021, compared to 48 million new 4G subscriptions. At the end of 2021, it is estimated that 5G networks will cover more than two billion people.

According to the latest forecasts, 5G is on track to become the dominant mobile access technology, based on subscriptions globally, by 2027. 5G is also expected to account for around 50 per cent of all mobile subscriptions worldwide – covering 75 per cent of the world’s population and carrying 62 per cent of the global smartphone traffic by 2027.

Fredrik Jejdling, executive vice president and head of Networks, Ericsson, said: “Mobile communication has had an incredible impact on society and business over the last ten years. When we look ahead to 2027, mobile networks will be more integral than ever to how we interact, live and work.”

The report also reveals that the nature of mobile connections is changing rapidly, contributing to the ongoing rise in mobile data traffic.

New forecasts reaffirm the rapid acceleration of massive IoT deployments in coming years, spanning use cases such as e-health wearables, logistical asset tracking, environmental monitoring and smart meters, and smart manufacturing tracking and monitoring devices. Massive IoT deployments are forecast to account for 51 percent of all cellular IoT connections by 2027.

In the same forecast period, Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) connections are forecast to grow almost threefold – from 88 million by the end of 2021, to around 230 million in 2027. Almost half of these connections are expected to be carried over 5G networks.

Meanwhile, Gartner reveals that the global smartphone sales to end-users has declined 6.8 per cent in the third quarter of 2021, compared to the same time period in 2020.

Read: Global smartphone sales declined 6.8% in third quarter of 2021: Gartner

Due to component shortages, production schedules were disrupted, resulting in lower inventory levels and delayed product availability, ultimately impacting sales to end-users