Only 26% of mobile phone plans in Western Europe include 5G, putting the region in fourth place globally when it comes to access to the high-performing technology standard, a new report shows.
According to the analysis by Swedish telecoms firm Ericsson published on Wednesday, "5G subscription penetration" by the end of 2023 was highest in North America with 59%, followed by North East Asia with 41% and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries at 34%.
The GCC nations include Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
The number of 5G subscriptions is on the rise across all regions, however, the Ericsson Mobility Report found.
By the end of the first quarter of 2024, the global number of 5G subscriptions was estimated to have exceeded 1.7 billion.
Analysts at Ericsson predict that Western Europe will gain some ground in what will essentially become a neck-and-neck race between the regions for best 5G access.
By 2029, Western Europe is expected to move up to third place with 86% of all plans offering 5G access, still lagging behind North America, projected to extend its lead to 90%, and the GCC countries with 89%.
Access in North East Asia is expected to fall behind by comparison, reaching 80%.
The fifth generation standard for cellular networks offers significantly higher data transmission rates than the previous UMTS (3G) and LTE (4G) standards.
In addition, latency is reduced, which allows the use of 5G for real-time applications such as remote machine control or in telemedicine.
5G technology is also better suited than the 3G or 4G standards if large crowds are accessing the internet at the same time, like spectators at a large football stadium.