In Spain, mobile data traffic will increase sixfold between 2017 and 2022 (a 43% year-on-year growth rate), reaching 6.3 exabytes annually in 2022 (1 exabyte in 2017) and accounting for 12% of all IP traffic in the country (fixed and mobile).
Mobile technologies continue to connect more people and things than ever before. In 2017, there were 5 billion mobile users worldwide, but in the next five years this figure will increase by 700 million to reach 5.7 billion users, representing approximately 71% of the world's population. In Spain, there will be 41 million mobile users (88% of the population) in 2022, up from 40 million in 2017.
By 2022, there will be more than 12 billion mobile IoT devices and connections (compared to 9 billion in 2017). In 2022, mobile networks will support more than 8 billion personal mobile devices and 4 billion IoT connections.
In Spain, there will be 103 million mobile IoT devices and connections in 2022 (2.2 per capita), up from 63.7 million in 2017 (a 10% year-on-year increase). Mobile IoT connections will account for more than half (50.3%) of the total (51.8 million), up from 13.6 million in 2017 (21.3%).
The updated report also highlights the ongoing efforts of mobile operators worldwide to improve mobile network performance. The average global mobile network speed will more than triple, from 8.7 Mbps in 2017 to 28.5 Mbps in 2022. Mobile speed varies significantly by geographic area, as 5G adoption begins to accelerate in some regions. In Spain, the average mobile network speed will more than quadruple, increasing from 15 Mbps in 2017 to 66.7 Mbps in 2022 (a 34.8% year-on-year increase).
Key predictions
: Share of 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G and LPWA connections.
In 2017, Low Power Wide Area (LPWA) networks supported 1.5% of all mobile devices/M2M connections (9.3% in Spain); 2G was responsible for 34% of global mobile devices/M2M connections (9% in Spain); 3G networks supported 30% of global mobile devices/M2M connections (35.7% in Spain); and 4G, 35% (46% in Spain).
By 2022, LPWA networks will support 14% of mobile devices/M2M connections (28.7% in Spain); 2G will be responsible for 8% of global mobile devices/M2M connections (2% in Spain); 3G will support 20% of global mobile devices/M2M connections (5.7% in Spain); 4G, 54% (58.7% in Spain); and 5G, 3% (4.9% in Spain), approximately 422 million 5G connections worldwide (5 million in Spain).
5G
connections will account for more than 3% of all mobile connections (over 422 million 5G devices and M2M connections globally) and almost 12% of total global mobile data traffic. In Spain, 5G connections will represent 4.9% of all mobile connections (5 million 5G devices and M2M connections) and 19.2% of total mobile data traffic in 2022.
By 2022, the average 5G connection (22 GB/month) will generate approximately three times more traffic than the average 4G connection (8 GB/month). In Spain, the average 5G connection (20 GB/month) will generate three times more traffic than the average 4G connection (6.7 GB/month) in 2022. In Spain, the average 5G speed (190 Mbps) will be more than 2.5 times faster than the average 4G speed (86.6 Mbps) in 2022.
WiFi: Offloading traffic from mobile (cellular) networks to fixed (WiFi) networks.
In 2017, the monthly offloaded traffic (13 Exabytes) exceeded the monthly mobile/cellular traffic (12 Exabytes).
In 2017, 54% of total mobile data traffic was offloaded (62% in Spain); by 2022, 59% of total mobile data traffic will be offloaded (71% in Spain).
In 2017, total global IP traffic (fixed and mobile) was divided as follows: 48% wired, 43% Wi-Fi, and 9% mobile. In 2017, total IP traffic (fixed and mobile) in Spain was divided as follows: 38% wired, 56% Wi-Fi, and 6% mobile.
By 2022, total global IP traffic (fixed and mobile) will be divided as follows: 29% wired, 51% Wi-Fi, and 20% mobile. By 2022, total IP traffic (fixed and mobile) in Spain will be divided as follows: 24% wired, 64% Wi-Fi, and 12% mobile.
Globally, the total number of Wi-Fi access points (including home Wi-Fi access points) will quadruple between 2017 (124 million) and 2022 (549 million). In Spain, the total number of WiFi access points (including those in homes) will quadruple between 2017 (4 million) and 2022 (16 million).
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