5G new radio (NR) drove the radio access network (RAN) market to new heights during the third quarter of 2019. This marked the fifth consecutive quarter of year-over-year growth for the first time in over a decade, according to the Dell’Oro Group RAN Quarterly report released today.  

“The positive momentum that has characterized this market since the upswing began in the second half of 2018 extended into 3Q 2019, underpinned by a 5G ramp that is accelerating at an extraordinary pace,” said Stefan Pongratz, analyst and vice president at Dell’Oro Group in a prepared statement. “While mid-band Massive MIMO continues to drive the lion share of the 5G capex, both low-band and Millimeter Wave (mmW) 5G NR deployments accelerated significantly in the quarter.” 

This is music to the ears for the top three vendors — Huawei, Ericsson, and Nokia — whose RAN revenues were stable in the quarter and for the year-to-date period.

In a separate report, Ericsson now claims that the global number of 5G subscriptions will top 2.6 billion by the mid-2020 — a significant increase from its prediction of 1.9 billion by 2024 earlier this year. 

The Swedish telecom giant expects 5G internet to cover 65% of the world’s population by 2025, which is another generous increase to its earlier predictions. 

Ericsson contends that 5G will handle 45% of global mobile data traffic within six years, and as connection speed increases, monthly consumption of mobile data is expected to skyrocket from 7.2 gigabytes (GB) to 24GB. 

Since China flipped the switch on its 5G networks in October, the June report that previously predicted over 10 million 5G subscriptions in China by the end of 2019 required an update for the end of 2019, from 10 million to 13 million — and  the country’s government already beginning plans towards a 6G network.

North America is currently in the top position and has been cited by Ericsson as the strongest market in terms of rapid 5G uptake over the coming years. The report predicts 74% of mobile contracts will be 5G by the end of 2025 with North East Asia expected to follow at 56% and Europe at 55%.

“In 2020, 5G-compatible devices will enter the volume market, which will scale up 5G adoption,” said Fredrik Jejdling, EVP and head of Networks at Ericsson, in a prepared statement. “The question is no longer if, but how quickly we can convert use cases into relevant applications for consumers and enterprises.”