LTE connections in the Asia Pacific region to account for one third of total mobile subs by 2020
SHANGHAI–Mobile subscribers in the Asia Pacific region are expected to reach 3.1 billion by 2020, up from 2.5 billion at the end of 2015, the GSMA’s Director General Mats Granryd said during a presentation at Mobile World Congress Shanghai 2016.
According to a new GSMA study, nearly 62% of the Asia Pacific population was subscribed to a mobile service in 2015. The study forecasts that 75% of the population in the region will have access to a mobile subscription by 2020, the executive said.
“It is quite clear that Asia Pacific leads the way in terms of mobile subscribers. More than half the world’s mobile subscribers are based in Asia Pacific,” the executive said, adding that the region will continue to be the main engine of global subscriber growth for the coming years.
Granryd also said that six out of 10 new mobile subscribers globally will come from the region until 2020.
According to the GSMA study, the four largest markets in the region–China, India, Indonesia and Japan– currently account for more than 75% of the region’s overall mobile subscriber base. India alone is expected to add nearly 250 million new subscribers by 2020 but smaller countries such as Bangladesh, Indonesia, Myanmar and Pakistan will also make major contributions to subscriber growth.
The executive also highlighted that 3G and 4G technologies accounted for 45% of total mobile connections in the region last year. These two technologies will represent 70% of the total base by 2020 as Asian telcos continue to expand its 4G footprint. The study also reveals that 4G LTE technology will represent over a third of total mobile connections in the region by 2020.
At the end of last year, Asia Pacific had 76 live 4G LTE networks and 20 live VoLTE networks. Granryd also said that smartphone connections in the region amounted to 1.7 billion at the end of last year, with China, India and Indonesia leading the way in terms of volume. GSMA forecasts that the total number of smartphones in Asia Pacific by 2020 will reach 3 billion, representing over 65% of overall mobile connections.
The executive also highlighted the importance of the mobile industry for the region’s overall GDP. According to the GSMA, mobile technologies and services accounted for 5.4% of Asia Pacific’s GDP last year. This contribution is equivalent to $1.3 trillion.
