According to the August 2023 update of the Ericsson Mobility Report, global 5G subscriptions grew by 175 million in the second quarter (Q2) of 2023. The report reveals that the Q2 additions bring the global number of 5G subscriptions close to 1.3 billion, wherein about 260 communications service providers (CSPs) have launched commercial 5G services and about 35 CSPs have launched 5G standalone (SA) networks.
India accounted for the most net addition of mobile subscriptions with seven million during Q2, followed by China (5 million) and the US (3 million). The latest report is an addendum to the full edition of the Ericsson Mobility Report, published in June 2023.
According to the Q2 2023 update, the number of mobile subscriptions totalled 8.3 billion, with a net addition of 40 million subscriptions during the quarter. Also, the number of unique mobile subscribers reaches 6.1 billion and the global mobile subscription penetration was 105 per cent.
Furthermore, the number of mobile broadband subscriptions grew by about 100 million in the quarter, totalling 7.4 billion, a year-on-year increase of five per cent, and mobile broadband now accounts for 88 per cent of all mobile subscriptions. Mobile data traffic also grew by 33 per cent between Q2 2022 and Q2 2023. 4G subscriptions increased by 11 million, totalling about 5.2 billion and representing 62 per cent of all mobile subscriptions.
Wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA)/high speed packet access (HSPA) subscriptions declined by 85 million and global system for mobile communications (GSM)/enhanced data rates for GSM evolution (EDGE)-only subscriptions dropped by 59 million during the quarter. Additionally, other technologies fell by about two million.
