According to the GSMA’s ‘Mobile Economy Asia Pacific 2023’ report, telecom operators in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region are expected to invest $259 billion in networks between 2023 and 2030, with the majority of that money going towards fifth-generation or 5G deployments.
According to the GSMA’s analysis, 5G is predicted to boost the Asia Pacific economy by $133 billion in 2030, accounting for more than 13% of the overall economic impact of mobile, with the majority of the gains expected to materialise in the years leading up to 2030.
GSMA stated that by the end of 2030, there will be approximately 1.4 billion 5G connections in APAC, accounting for 41% of all mobile connections.
The GSMA has recognised Extended Reality (XR) as a key driver for 5G adoption, with augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) having the ability to bring in a new era of immersive consumer experiences. 5G fixed wireless access (FWA) services are also mentioned as a strategy to monetise 5G by providing additional revenue opportunities, particularly in areas with poor fixed broadband penetration.
Interestingly, according to the GSMA, mobile technologies and services would create slightly under 5% of Asia Pacific’s GDP in 2022, amounting to $810 billion in economic value added.
According to the report, telcos and the broader mobile ecosystem would directly employ around seven million people in Asia Pacific by 2022. Furthermore, the ecosystem’s economic activity generated around 4 million jobs in other sectors, suggesting that nearly 11 million jobs were directly or indirectly supported. According to the GSMA, the mobile sector contributed significantly to public sector funding, with over $90 billion earned through taxes on the sector in 2022.
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