- The private mobile network market grew 62% year-on-year in 2022 despite the tough economic climate, accounting for $2.7 billion in infrastructure revenue. This will grow to over $10 billion by 2027
- North America and Europe are the largest global markets, but Asia–Pacific is expected to catch up over the next few years — with India highlighted as a vital market
- Growth is being fuelled by multisite deployments in industries such as transportation, mining, manufacturing, warehousing and more
London, 21 February 2023: Private mobile networks had another year of thriving growth in 2022, with global deployments growing 62% year-on-year and generating $2.7 billion in revenue. This is according to CCS Insight’s latest Spotlight report.
Richard Webb, Director of Infrastructure at CCS Insight, commented: “Private mobile networks are a red-hot topic, and the technology is taking a meaningful foothold in the market for wireless connectivity. There are a growing number of deployment options available to enterprises in different industries and sizes, fuelling growth. In addition to many new customers adopting their first private networks, more companies are rolling out networks throughout multiple sites following successful trials. Our research shows there are an average of 2.1 private mobile networks per customer, excluding larger nationwide deployments”.
Europe, the Middle East and Africa is the largest region by number of unique customers, with the bulk of organizations trialling the technology. However, North America has the most commercial deployments. Asia–Pacific is the third-largest region, with China contributing a much higher number of hybrid and virtual private networks, which piggyback on public mobile networks, than other markets.
Luke Pearce, Senior Analyst at CCS Insight, added: “The success of Citizens Broadband Radio Service spectrum in the US has helped the country become a leader in private mobile network deployments, simplifying the route to market by offering predictable access to spectrum”. More than 20 countries now have dedicated spectrum of this sort, and more are expected to release it over the next 12 months. CCS Insight believes this will be a catalyst for further growth.
One of the countries yet to release this spectrum is India, presenting a lucrative opportunity in the enterprise market now that 5G spectrum has finally been given the go-ahead there. Given India’s growth potential, it will be a hot market to watch over the next 18 months. CCS Insight also forecasts that deployments in Asia–Pacific will grow 68% year-on-year in 2023 and even catch up with North America by 2027. This is because of the former’s large addressable market of manufacturing sites.
With a tough economic climate forecast for 2023, there is a concern that the cost of investing in private mobile network infrastructure will prompt some enterprises to delay orders or scale back commercialization. However, CCS Insight believes that private mobile networks will maintain healthy traction given the cost efficiencies they can deliver. Pearce observed: “Geopolitically vulnerable sectors such as power utilities and military and defence present significant growth opportunities in 2023 as they use increased funding to modernize and optimize their communications infrastructure”.
Looking further ahead, total revenue for private mobile network infrastructure is expected to reach a compound annual growth rate of 37% between 2022 and 2027, and rise to $10.5 billion in the same period.
Reflecting on CCS Insight’s research, Pearce concluded: “The supplier landscape is evolving fast. We expect that the entrance of new radio access network equipment suppliers, 5G software core providers and hyperscale cloud services offering new models of deployment will disrupt the status quo. This will challenge market leaders Nokia and Ericsson and drive growth in the number of customers adopting private mobile networks, alongside the roll-out of multisite deployments in select sectors”.
For more information, as well as access to a summary of CCS Insight’s Spotlight report and upcoming quarterly tracking service Pulse, please click here.
Notes to editors
CCS Insight is a leading provider of research on the mobile network infrastructure market. Its Spotlight report forms part of a broader suite of research into mobile networks, including market forecasts, regular reports and updates on the latest announcements, events and news.
About CCS Insight
CCS Insight is a global analyst company focussing on current and future trends in technology. It provides comprehensive services that are tailored to meet the needs of individual clients, helping them make sense of the connected world. Follow @CCSInsight on Twitter or learn more at www.ccsinsight.com.
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