APAC telcos to have 477m 5G subs by 2023

Asia-Pacific’s mobile operators are expected to have a combined 477 million 5G subscriptions by 2023, according to GlobalData.

In a new report,  the research firm said that it expects the first 5G service launches by operators in the region next year.

Total mobile users in Asia-Pacific are meanwhile on track to reach 2.87 billion by the end of the year, growing to 3.3 billion by the end of 2023, for a CAGR of 2.8%.

Subscription growth will be driven by the expansion of wireless networks in underserved markets, GlobalData predicted.

Meanwhile 4G will become the dominant mobile technology by share of subscriptions this year, outnumbering 2G for the first time.

The total LTE market share is on track to nearly double by the end of the forecast period in 2023 driven by continuous expansion of LTE networks by operators in the region.

Data services revenue is meanwhile predicted to account for 60.3% of total mobile service revenue generated by operators in the region between 2018 and 2023.

GlobalData has also estimated that MVNOs in Asia-Pacific have around 194 million subscribers, accounting for 4% of the total market.