The Mobile Core Network (MCN) market 5-year compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) (2024-2029) remains in negative territory, according to a new report from Dell’Oro Group. Economic headwinds, competitive price pressure, and slow migration to 5G Standalone (5G SA) and Voice over New Radio (VoNR) plague the market.
“The only bright spots are the segments that will grow during the forecast period. They are the EMEA region, 5G MCN, and MEC. However, these segments are not growing enough to offset the decline in the 4G MCN and VoLTE/VoNR market segments. The MCN market is projected to peak in 2025 and slide lower throughout the remainder of the forecast period. Unfortunately, it is a bleak outlook,” said Dave Bolan, Research Director at Dell’Oro Group. “Only eight new 5G SA eMBB networks were launched in 2024, bringing the total to an estimated 61 launched by MNOs in 34 countries.
“The 5G SA market, which is the growth driver for the market, has had difficulty finding the right path to scale the market dramatically upward. New hope is being promoted with 5G-Advanced networks, common application programmable interfaces (APIs), non-terrestrial networks (NTN), artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML), and the newest Generative AI and Agentic AI. MNOs are exploring all these options, but it could be difficult because investment capital is going into AI Data Centers and semiconductors supporting AI. It remains to be seen if MNOs can compete for investment dollars,” Bolan added.
Additional highlights from the Mobile Core Network & Multi-Access Edge Computing 5-Year January 2025 Forecast Report:
- The CAGR is negative for all technology segments—packet Core, Policy, Signaling, Subscriber Data Management, and IMS Core—in the MCN market.
- For the 5G MCN and MEC market segments, the EMEA region is projected to have the highest CAGR rate, and China the lowest.
