Four in every 10 of the world’s population will be connected to fifth-generation (5G) wireless network by 2024, communications equipment company Ericsson-LG said Friday.

In a press conference in Seoul, South Korea, Ericsson-LG projected that 5G will service more than 40 percent of the global population, or 1.5 billion users on enhanced mobile broadband by the end of 2024.

The outlook is based on the latest Ericsson Mobility Report released last month, which introduced 5G to be the “fastest generation of cellular technology to be rolled out on a global scale.”

The report came as Korea’s three wireless carriers - SK Telecom Co., KT Corp., and LG Uplus Corp. - launched world’s first commercial services of 5G network across the country this month.

Ericsson-LG noted that 5G subscription will account for 17 percent of world’s total mobile subscription and expected long-term evolution (LTE) subscription to reach 5.4 billion by the end of 2024 to account for more than 60 percent of mobile subscription.

“Key drivers for 5G deployment include increased network capacity, lower cost per gigabyte and new use case requirements,” the Ericsson Mobility Report said.

Total mobile data traffic in 2024 will be five times the level of 2018, with 5G networks expected to be responsible for a quarter of mobile traffic by the end of 2024.

Mobile data traffic in the third quarter increased nearly 79 percent from last year, marking the highest growth since 2013.

Traffic increased particularly in Northeast Asia - mainly China, the report said. Traffic growth per smartphone jumped an estimated 140 percent on year in 2018, with an average 7.3 gigabytes in terms of monthly data traffic per smartphone.

Ericsson-LG, meanwhile, said North America and Northeast Asia will lead growth in 5G subscription. In North America, 5G subscriptions are forecast to account for 55 percent of mobile subscriptions by the end of 2024, while in Northeast Asia, 43 percent, and Western Europe 30 percent.

By Lee Dong-in and Lee Eun-joo

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]