As 5G devices continue to become a reality, commercial service offerings will rise
In a new report on the latest generational upgrade from LTE to 5G report, the Global mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) identified 884 operators actively investing in LTE, with 769 operational LTE networks in 225 countries, 194 VoLTE capable networks and 296 operators in 100 countries investing in 5G.
The GSA also provided detailed analysis of speeds and spectrum used for 5G trials in its report, Global Progress to 5G – Trials, Deployments and Launches, which revealed that 154 operators in 66 countries have demonstrated, are testing or trialing, or have been licensed to begin field trials of 5G-enabling and candidate technologies.
Earlier this month, the GSA’s August 2019 5G Ecosystem Report confirmed that the number of announced 5G devices has passed a major industry milestone, with 100 5G devices now announced globally. The GSA also revealed that 56 operators in 32 countries have announced deployment of 5G within their live network, with 39 operators having announced 3GPP 5G service launches.
The increase in 5G devices is significant because operators have had to await the availability of 5G devices, resulting in the number of announced the launch of commercial services to remain low. Now that the devices have started to become a reality, however, we can expect to see an increase in commercial offerings.
Among recent service launches (or limited service launches) are those by three operators in Kuwait (Viva, Zain and Ooredoo), Batelco in Bahrain, T-Mobile and Vodafone in Germany, Vodafone in the UK, Digi Mobile in Romania, Monaco Telecom and Dhiraagu in the Maldives.
The GSA is committed to tracking the progress of 5G deployments worldwide, and Joe Barrett, GSA president, commented that the pace of 5G is continuing to accelerate. “What’s more,” he added, “it shows no sign of abating.”
