By the end of this year, more than a billion people are expected to live within the coverage area of a 5G network. This is evident from research by technology company Ericsson.
However, that doesn’t mean that so many users can already take advantage of the faster 5G network. There are still many people who do not have a smartphone that is suitable for 5G. Ericsson estimates that 220 million 5G subscriptions have been subscribed by the end of December, eight in ten of which are in China.
In the Ericsson Mobility Report, the technology company writes that 5G subscriptions are expected to account for more than half of all mobile data traffic in six years. According to Ericsson, some 3.5 billion 5G subscriptions will have been taken out by the end of 2026.
Currently, China and the United States are leading the way in integrating 5G. In Europe, the transition is slowing down as several countries have postponed frequency auctions due to the pandemic. In the Netherlands, KPN and T-Mobile customers have been able to use their renewed mobile network with 5G technology since the end of July, provided they have a suitable device.
This is possible due to the first auction of 5G frequencies. The three major telecom providers KPN, VodafoneZiggo and T-Mobile have received frequencies. They were also the only parties admitted to the auction.
