The GSMA forecasts that mobile data traffic in Europe will nearly triple over the next five years, driven by expanding 4G coverage in Central and Eastern Europe and ongoing improvements in 5G capacity and reach.
Their analysis indicates that 5G subscribers are eager to adopt high-bandwidth services such as cloud gaming, extended reality (XR), and high-definition video streaming. Meeting this demand will require sustained network investment: operators are expected to invest more than €198 billion in network upgrades through 2030.
In 2022 the mobile ecosystem contributed €910 billion to the European economy, accounting for 4.3 percent of regional GDP. The sector supported approximately 2.2 million jobs, both directly and indirectly, across Europe.
Mobile technologies boosted productivity by an estimated €670 billion, while mobile operators themselves contributed roughly €110 billion. The GSMA projects that total economic contribution from the mobile sector will reach €1 trillion by 2030, largely due to ecosystem growth and the increasing integration of mobile services across industry verticals.
5G is expected to become the dominant mobile technology in Europe within three years, led by strong adoption in countries such as Germany and the United Kingdom. By 2030, 5G adoption is projected to cover about 87 percent of mobile users.
The report also anticipates significant business benefits from 5G as industries deploy new use cases. By 2030, roughly 53 percent of 5G’s forecasted business value is expected to arise from services, with manufacturing contributing around 30 percent. Overall, 5G is projected to add approximately €153 billion to European GDP over the next decade—about 15 percent of the total economic gains attributed to mobile technologies.
However, the GSMA warns that policy barriers that curtail investment in next-generation networks could jeopardize Europe’s digital competitiveness and its “Digital Decade” objectives. For example, only about five percent of European 5G networks are currently deployed in standalone mode, compared with around 25 percent in the Asia-Pacific region—an indication of the challenging operating environment facing European operators.
Sustained network investment is therefore essential for Europe to remain globally competitive and to provide citizens and businesses with the digital infrastructure they will require in the coming years.
(Photo by James Yarema on Unsplash)
See also: Huawei boosts European presence with Paris Innovation Center
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