Mobile World Congress 2016 wrap-up

Please sign in or register for a free public account to access this report.
GSMA Intelligence together with Mobile World Live is publishing its key findings from Mobile World Congress. For the first time in the event’s history, the 2016 edition of Mobile World Congress welcomed more than 100,000 visitors to Barcelona for the mobile industry’s biggest event. Attendees from over 200 countries convened to showcase new products and reflect on key industry issues and announcements.
Overall, the mood at Mobile World Congress was one of tangible progress towards standards, the practicalities of implementation and use cases. Operators and vendors are moving to deploy solutions aimed at tackling the digital transformation required for new business models. The industry continues to reshape for the opportunities and challenges ahead.
Our analysis is organised into three key areas:
Devices: Focus shifts as smartphone innovation slows; Wearables start to mean business; Virtual reality: vendors jostle for position
Networks: Industry demonstrates 5G technology and intent; Connecting the unconnected – balloons and drones to the rescue? NFV – a prerequisite for network innovation; Ecosystem collaboration drives readiness of mobile IoT
Services: IoT platforms suffer from cacophony of standards; Rapid expansion of security threat expected by 2020; Mobile commerce ecosystem continues to expand; The sharing economy: on-demand gets physical; Ad-blocking momentum continues as battle lines are drawn
Related research
GSMA Open Gateway: State of the Market, H1 2025
Representing 285 networks and almost 80% of mobile subscribers worldwide, 73 operator groups are now committed to GSMA Open Gateway. This latest research provides an update on the state of the market, recent developments, and examples of GSMA Open Gateway in action. It also offers a deep dive on supply/demand gap analysis.
The Mobile Economy Latin America 2025
Operators across Latin America are making steady progress on their 5G journey, with adoption forecast to reach more than 50% by 2030. This latest edition of The Mobile Economy Latin America provides an update on key mobile market data and the impact of mobile on the economy across the region.
Mobile Data Deck, Q1 2025
The GSMA Intelligence Mobile Data Deck offers a fast track to all the essential data you need to know, with key mobile metrics in one easy-to-use deck of charts. The forecasts to 2030 include connections by region and technology generation, smartphone connections and adoption, and mobile operator revenue.
Authors
How to access this report
Annual subscription: Subscribe to our research modules for comprehensive access to more than 200 reports per year.
Enquire about subscriptionContact our research team
Get in touch with us to find out more about our research topics and analysis.
Contact our research teamMedia
To cite our research, please see our citation policy in our Terms of Use, or contact our Media team for more information.
Learn moreRelated research
GSMA Open Gateway: State of the Market, H1 2025
Representing 285 networks and almost 80% of mobile subscribers worldwide, 73 operator groups are now committed to GSMA Open Gateway. This latest research provides an update on the state of the market, recent developments, and examples of GSMA Open Gateway in action. It also offers a deep dive on supply/demand gap analysis.
The Mobile Economy Latin America 2025
Operators across Latin America are making steady progress on their 5G journey, with adoption forecast to reach more than 50% by 2030. This latest edition of The Mobile Economy Latin America provides an update on key mobile market data and the impact of mobile on the economy across the region.
Mobile Data Deck, Q1 2025
The GSMA Intelligence Mobile Data Deck offers a fast track to all the essential data you need to know, with key mobile metrics in one easy-to-use deck of charts. The forecasts to 2030 include connections by region and technology generation, smartphone connections and adoption, and mobile operator revenue.
- 200 reports a year
- 50 million data points
- Over 350 metrics