The demand for high quality mobile data services has increased dramatically with the advent of robust smartphones and tablets being used on 4G LTE networks. As mobile consumers' demand continues to grow, the question some in the industry are asking is, "What is next after 4G LTE?" The answer is 5G. But what exactly is 5G, how much will it cost to build, and when will U.S. mobile operators deliver it?
iGR, a market research consultancy focused on the wireless and mobile industry, sought to answer these questions and has recently published a new market study that analyzes 5G -- an ecosystem, defined by ITU-R's IMT-2020 5G standard, that has the goal of improving the connectivity experience of the mobile consumer. The first 5G networks are likely to include some or all of the following: a virtualized mobile core over which a preponderance of traffic flows, some type of "evolved" IoT (Internet of Things) use case, and LTE-Advanced deployed along with new spectrum.
In addition to analyzing the specific requirements and use cases of 5G, iGR has created a forecast for the cost of building and deploying 5G networks in the U.S. First of all, 5G networks are likely to be layered on top of existing and upgraded LTE networks, and iGR has forecasted that $48 billion will be spent upgrading these LTE networks between 2015 and 2019. Through its model, iGR has also forecast that a total of $56 billion will be spent in the U.S. from 2017 to 2025 on the build of 5G. Therefore, total costs for the build of the upgraded LTE network and the 5G network is $104 billion between 2015 and 2025.
Iain Gillott, president and founder of iGR
While 5G is likely to include some new air interfaces, the initial deployments will be based on future versions of the current 4G LTE networks. Based on the research conducted for the new 5G cost study and prior research on LTE infrastructure costs, we forecast that a total of $104 billion will be spent in total to upgrade LTE and build 5G between 2015 and 2025.
