Research shows that global 5G network infrastructure revenue will grow 39% in 2021

Gartner predicts that global 5G network infrastructure revenue will grow 39% in 2021, from $13.7 billion in 2020 to $19.1 billion.

5G is expected to be the only significant opportunity for growth in investment in wireless infrastructure going forward.

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Communications service providers (CSPs) in mature markets accelerated 5G development in 2020 and 2021, with 5G accounting for 39% of total wireless infrastructure revenue this year, according to Gartner.

5G is the fastest growing segment of the wireless network infrastructure market and is expected to be the only significant investment growth opportunity in the sector.

Investment in traditional wireless generation is deteriorating rapidly in all regions, while investment in non-5G small cells will also decline as CSPs migrate to 5G small cells.

"The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the need for optimized and ultra-fast broadband connections to support home working and bandwidth-hungry applications such as streaming video, online gaming and social media applications," said Michael Porowski, senior principal research analyst at Gartner.

Customer Service Providers by Region

In terms of regions, Greater China is expected to maintain its top position in global 5G revenue in 2021, reaching US$9.1 billion, up from US$7.4 billion in 2020, Gartner said.

Meanwhile, CSPs in North America are expected to grow 5G revenues from $2.9 billion in 2020 to $4.3 billion in 2021, driven in part by increased adoption of dynamic spectrum sharing and millimeter wave base stations.

In Western Europe, 5G revenues are expected to increase from $794 million in 2020 to $1.6 billion in 2021 as customer service providers prioritize spectrum licensing, mobile core infrastructure modernization, and regulatory processes.

5G coverage in first-tier cities continues to rise

In 2020, 10% of customer service providers offer commercially available 5G services, which may achieve multi-regional availability, but Gartner predicts that this number will increase to 60% by 2024, which is similar to the adoption rates of LTE and 4G in the past.

This rapid shift in customer behavior is driving the growth of the global Passive Optical Network (PON) market, making it the technology of choice.

Additionally, as the price gap between 10G-capable XGS-PON and other technologies narrows, CSPs are willing to invest in XGS-PON to differentiate themselves in terms of customer experience and network quality.

Gartner estimates that by 2025, 60% of Tier 1 CSPs will adopt XGS-PON technology at scale to deliver ultra-fast broadband services to residential and business users, up from less than 30% in 2020.

Porowski added, “Business and customer demand are factors in this growth. As consumers return to the office, they will continue to upgrade or switch to gigabit fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) services as connectivity becomes an essential remote working service, and users will also increasingly check CSPs to meet office and remote working needs.”