The Mobile Economy Asia Pacific 2021

Mobile has been instrumental during the Covid-19 outbreak and will be even more integral to the way people live and businesses operate post pandemic. Across Asia Pacific, operators are using the exceptional scale and utility of mobile networks and services to facilitate innovative digital solutions for enterprises in line with Industry 4.0 objectives. In particular, 5G and IoT will play key roles in the implementation of digital transformation projects across different industries.

By the end of 2020, 1.6 billion people in Asia Pacific subscribed to mobile services, representing nearly 60% of the region’s population. Adding new subscribers is increasingly difficult, as markets are becoming saturated and the economics of reaching rural populations are becoming more difficult to justify in a challenging financial climate for mobile operators. Meanwhile, a second wave of 5G network rollouts has begun in Asia Pacific, marked by a number of significant 5G-related activities in India, Indonesia and Malaysia. By the end of 2025, 5G will account for 14% of total mobile connections, overtaking 2G and 3G in the intervening period.

The report also examines the impact of mobile on the wider economy of Asia Pacific. In 2020, mobile technologies and services generated over $750 billion of economic value added (5.1% of GDP) in the region. This figure will grow by $110 billion by 2025 to $860 billion, as countries increasingly benefit from the improvements in productivity and efficiency brought about by the increased take-up of mobile services.