Investment in and deployment of 5G technology has resulted in the commercial availability of more than 85 live networks and 300 devices, worldwide, the Global Mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) has announced.
According to the GSA, 412 operators in 131 countries/territories were investing in 5G, while 806 public LTE networks exist. The organization reports 85 networks are in Europe, the Middle East and Africa; 35 in the Asian-Pacific region; and 15 in the Americas
5G remains on track to become one of the fastest adopted mobile technologies ever, the GSA states.
Out of 185 private network deployments tracked by GSA, it noted that 65 percent are using LTE, 28 percent are on 5G, while the remaining 7 percent blend LTE and 5G. During the GSA’s study period, at least 519 5G devices were announced from 104 vendors, with 303 commercially available.
GSA forecasts spectrum auction and related activities to pick up the pace with more than 75 auctions/assignments underway or expected by the end of 2022.
At the current growth rates, GSA anticipates more than 500 commercial devices will be available by the end of 2021.
While only three 5G standalone network launches have taken place so far, GSA believes another 56 operators are known to be investing in standalone networks, of which 13 are ready to be deployed.
