Ericsson
Mobile data traffic continues to grow strongly, with a ten-fold increase forecast by the end of 2021
Currently, there are as many mobile subscriptions as people in the world, and every second, 20 new mobile broadband subscriptions are activated. In addition to the increase in subscribers, data consumption also continues to rise.
Consequently, mobile data traffic in Q3 2015 was 65 percent higher than in Q3 2014, largely driven by increased video consumption on mobile devices. Almost 70 percent of all mobile data traffic will be from video by 2021. Apart from mobile phones, there will also be a multitude of other connected devices communicating. Out of a total forecast of 28 billion connected devices – more than 15 billion will be Machine-to-Machine (M2M) and consumer electronic devices by 2021.
In this edition, we have three feature articles exploring various aspects of how ICT solutions contribute to a sustainable and resource-efficient society.
ICT and the low carbon economy.
Our research shows that ICT solutions could help address global warming by supporting other industrial sectors to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by
up to 15 percent by 2030. This equates to more than the current carbon footprint of the EU and US combined.
Decoupling energy from traffic growth.
Despite the significant growth forecast for mobile traffic, the energy performance of mobile networks is set to improve from a global average of 2 kWh per gigabyte transferred data traffic in 2015 to a projected 0.25 kWh in 2021.
5G beyond mobile broadband
Apart from improvements in mobile broadband services, 5G is about catering for a rapidly widening range of use cases related to the Internet of Things. One potential use case could be to cost-efficiently optimize the operations of a public bus service, achieving resource savings along with reduced environmental impact.
We hope you find the report engaging and valuable.
Ericsson is the driving force behind the Networked Society – a world leader in communications technology and services. Our long-term relationships with every major telecom operator in the world allow people, business and society to fulfill their potential and create a more sustainable future.
Our services, software and infrastructure – especially in mobility, broadband and the cloud – are enabling the telecom industry and other sectors to do better business, increase efficiency, improve the user experience and capture new opportunities.
With approximately 115,000 professionals and customers in 180 countries, we combine global scale with technology and services leadership. We support networks that connect more than 2.5 billion subscribers. Forty percent of the world’s mobile traffic is carried over Ericsson networks. And our investments in research and development ensure that our solutions – and our customers – stay in front.