Smartphone subscriptions are expected to top 6.1 billion in 2020, up from 2.7 billion subscription in 2014, according to Ericsson Mobility report.
The growth in the global smartphone market continues as 65-70 per cent of all phones sold in the third quarter of 2014 were smartphones, compared with 55 per cent in the same quarter for 2013. Fastest growth for new mobile subscriptions was found in India and China, with 18 million and 12 million net additions respectively, in Q3 2014. Smartphones currently account for just 37 per cent of all mobile phone subscriptions, meaning that many users are yet to make the switch to the more feature-rich, internet-friendly option, the report said.
Notwithstanding this increased rate of sales, which will see the addition of an estimated 800 million new smartphone subscriptions by the end of 2014, the report said that there is still plenty of room for growth in the sector.
“The falling cost of handsets, coupled with improved usability and increasing network coverage, are factors that are making mobile technology a global phenomenon that will soon be available to the vast majority of the world’s population, regardless of age or location,” Rima Qureshi, senior vice president, chief strategy officer and head of M&A, Ericsson, said in a statement.
Ninety percent of the world’s population over six years old is predicted to have a mobile phone by 2020, as per the report.
In terms of data growth, Ericsson report said that video is the largest and fastest growing segment of mobile data traffic.
In 4G-dominated networks, video currently constitutes 45-55 per cent of mobile traffic, driven largely by increased usage of video streaming and improvements in the mobile video experience.
Video is increasingly appearing as part of other online applications such as news and adverts, and on social media platforms. At the same time, growth in video streaming is being driven by access to over-the-top (OTT) services and content, such as those provided by YouTube.
Ericsson estimates that mobile video traffic will increase tenfold by 2020, ultimately constituting around 55 per cent of all mobile data traffic in 2020.
The report also said that 5G technology is expected to be commercially deployed in 2020, and the technology is predicted to have a faster uptake than 4G LTE.