5G: Coverage continues to grow in Europe, but still not at the level of the US, South Korea and China
Europe recorded an 11% growth in the level of 5G coverage in 2022. Despite the progress made in Europe, countries such as the United States, South Korea, China and Japan continue to stand out on the world stage. 5G coverage Europe
Coverage of all populated areas of the European Union by 5G networks is one of the major objectives of the “Digital Compass” presented by the European Commission in 2021. The latest State of Digital Communications by the European Telecommunications Network Operators’ Association (ETNO) reveals that the 5G coverage in Europe reached the 73% mark in 2022. However, the value does not come close to those recorded by other regions of the world.
The report reveals that the level of 5G coverage in Europe has increased by 11% compared to 2021 when this figure stood at 62%. The data indicate that the growth is the result of greater investment by European operators, described by specialists as the highest since 2016 (56.3 billion euros).
Despite the progress made in Europe, countries such as the United States (96%), South Korea (95%), Japan (90%) and China (86%) continue to stand out in terms of 5G coverage, in line with results presented in previous years.
Europe is mainly focused on increasing the coverage of the 3.5 GHz spectrum frequencies
It should be noted, however, that there are important differences to take into account between the territories. For example, in Europe, the expansion of fifth-generation mobile networks is mainly focused on increasing the coverage of the 3.5 GHz spectrum frequencies. On the other hand, in the United States, the focus is on the use of bandwidths below 1 GHz.
Although higher than the global average (76 Mbit/s), downlink speeds in Europe (92 Mbit/s) are still lower than those recorded in South Korea (244 Mbit/s), in China (172 Mbit/s) and in the United States (128 Mbit/s).
Countries that are part of the Asia-Pacific region also lead the way in terms of the number of standalone 5G services available, with a total of 15. By comparison, Europe has 4 and North America has 3.
The rollout of 5G has been driven by a desire to increase connectivity and support the growing demands of modern technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT) and autonomous vehicles. In the future, 5G is expected to play a key role in enabling new technologies and services, such as virtual and augmented reality and smart cities. As the technology continues to evolve and mature, we can expect to see further growth in 5G coverage and adoption across Europe.
