By Anne Morris
GenAI and next wave of 5G among key 2024 trends
The next wave of 5G technology, generative AI, private wireless and non-terrestrial networks are the big “cross-cutting themes” that will shape the global mobile market in the coming years, according to a new report from GSMA Intelligence.
The report, titled Global Mobile Trends 2024, highlights the strides made since its first edition in 2015. This is particularly the case for 5G, which saw a flurry of deployments in 2023 and is now available in most countries.
As the report notes, a second wave of 5G deployments began in 2023 and will continue in 2024, “characterised by launches in many emerging markets, and new investments in standalone and 5G-Advanced”.
However, the rise in 5G has not materially altered mobile revenue growth, which stands stubbornly low, the analyst house observed.
“Economic weakness has played its part, but a bigger issue is that price premiums are eventually competed away in the absence of a ‘killer app’ that people will pay more for. Meanwhile, the B2B story was cited as still developing around private wireless networks, edge and IoT.
B2B remains a focus for the industry, with the launch of the next iteration of 5G networks an important underpinning for growth over the next three years,” the report said.
From AI to NTN
In the wider market it unsurprisingly stated AI as the biggest tech story of the last year with far-reaching implications for commerce, employment and security. In 2024 generative AI is expected to support growth through smarter services and marketing.
As for private wireless, enterprise demand for private 5G “has put traditional competition layers in flux as Nokia, Ericsson and other vendors may well be lead contractors, supported by operators – rather than the other way around”.
Meanwhile, the enshrining of NTN standards into 5G new radio by 3GPP provided a turning point in 2023, offering telcos a route to reach revenues not previously possible.
“Satellites and NTNs are symbolic of a new, pragmatic approach to partnerships with other industries to solve mutual problems. This mentality and cultural shift will also form the bedrock of delivery models for 5G B2B services in vertical sectors,” the report concluded.