GSMA Releases September 2018 Global Mobile Trends Report

The GSM Association (GSMA) has released its latest Global Mobile Trends report, pointing to the increasing commoditisation of connectivity in what it describes as "the IoT [Internet of Things] era."

"The latest edition of Global Mobile Trends provides a comprehensive deep dive into the key themes and issues shaping our industry today," explains Peter Jarich, head of GSMA Intelligence, of his organisation's report into the industry, "and is required reading for anyone involved in the mobile ecosystem that wants to understand where we are headed next."

Among the conclusions drawn in the report is the prediction of a continued trend towards the commoditisation of connectivity in "the IoT Era". "Providing connectivity will account for only around five per cent of the global IoT revenue opportunity by 2025," the GSMA report explains, pegging that opportunity at around $51 billion. "The vast majority of growth will come from the applications, platforms and services layer, which will account for more than two-thirds of IoT revenue" - a figure the GSMA puts at around $754 billion.

Commoditisation of connectivity is a key driving trend behind Lime Microsystems' field-programmable radio frequency (FPRF) products, as well as their implementation in the LimeSDR family of software defined radios and LimeNET self-contained multi-role base station systems.

Other conclusions include the prediction that by 2025 some 72 percent of the global internet user base - around 3.7 billion people - will be accessing the internet exclusively via cellular mobile connections, that 5G connectivity will account for around 15 percent of global mobile connections over the same period with increasing adoption in the industrial arena, and that mobile revenue growth will be driven largely by volume.

The full report is available now as a PDF download from the GSMA Intelligence website.