Mobile broadband market in Asia-Pacific to reach $296 billion in 2029

Driven by 5G service expansions, the mobile broadband services revenue in the Asia-Pacific region is likely to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.2 per cent from $229.6 billion in 2024 to $296.2 billion in 2029, according to a new report.

It will mainly be driven by the growing availability and adoption of 5G services across several countries, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

The unique mobile user penetration of the population in Asia-Pacific will reach 82.9 per cent in 2029, driven by mobile network coverage expansions, particularly in underserved countries and promotional/discounted plans offered by operators to drive subscriber growth.

According to the report, in developed Asia, the number of mobile users will increase at a sluggish CAGR of 0.4 per cent, due to saturated nature of these markets.

In emerging Asia, on the contrary, the number of mobile users will grow at a faster rate, supported by the growing availability of affordable handsets and local governments’ efforts to improve and extend mobile networks coverage.

“With 5G services already available in most of the developed countries like China, Japan, Australia, Hong Kong, India, and Korea, and set to be launched soon in emerging markets like Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, revenue prospects for the mobile data segment will remain strong throughout the forecast period,” said Sarwat Zeeshan, telecom analyst at GlobalData.

Government support for 5G expansion will also strengthen the mobile data services market in the region. Taiwan, Singapore, China, South Korea, and Japan are the key 5G markets in terms of 5G subscriptions as a percentage of total subscriptions.

Taiwan will have 94.6 per cent of mobile subscribers on 5G by 2029, thanks to the government’s efforts to promote 5G technology in the country.

“APAC has also become the centre of a technological race for 5G+ supremacy,” said Zeeshan. Zee News