Global wireless 5G connections have reached 438 million by the third quarter of 2021 and are on pace to exceed 540 million by the end of the year, according to data from Omdia, said 5G Americas, the wireless industry trade association and voice of 5G and LTE for the Americas.
Chris Pearson, President of 5G Americas said, “Despite challenging times with the COVID-19 pandemic issues, 5G uptake continues at a fast pace as communications and connectivity have taken center stage.”
Omdia estimates global 5G connections reaching 4.8 billion by the end of 2026. Of that, 516 million is expected to come from North America and 301 million from Latin America and the Caribbean.
Omdia principal analyst Kristin Paulin said, “While Oceania Eastern & South-Eastern Asia, which includes China, will account for more than half of all 5G subscriptions at the end of 2026, the Americas region will manage to carve out a 17% portion after growing 1,000% from 2021 to 2026.”
By region, North America had a total of 56.5 million 5G connections by the end of Q3 2021, which is an addition of 12.5 million 5G connections – a gain of 28 percent quarter over quarter. Additionally, it had 505 million LTE connections by the end of Q3 2021.
4G LTE still remains the dominant wireless cellular technology in Latin America and the Caribbean with 484.6 million connections. That represents 21 percent annual growth with the addition of 82.8 million new LTE subscriptions year over year.
https://www.5gamericas.org/5g-on-pace-to-exceed-a-half-billion-connections-by-end-of-2021/
