《2024年歐亞大陸移動經(jīng)濟報告》

TheMobile

Economy

Eurasia2024

GSMA

TheGSMAisaglobalorganisationunifyingthemobile

ecosystemtodiscover,developanddeliverinnovation

foundationaltopositivebusinessenvironmentsand

societalchange.Ourvisionistounlockthefullpowerof

connectivitysothatpeople,industryandsocietythrive.

Representingmobileoperatorsandorganisationsacross

themobileecosystemandadjacentindustries,theGSMA

deliversforitsmembersacrossthreebroadpillars:

ConnectivityforGood,IndustryServicesandSolutions,

andOutreach.Thisactivityincludesadvancingpolicy,

tacklingtoday’sbiggestsocietalchallenges,underpinning

thetechnologyandinteroperabilitythatmakemobile

work,andprovidingtheworld’slargestplatformto

convenethemobileecosystemattheMWCandM360

seriesofevents.

Weinviteyoutofindoutmoreat

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GSMA

Intelligence

GSMAIntelligenceisthedefinitivesourceofglobalmobile

operatordata,analysisandforecasts,andpublisherof

authoritativeindustryreportsandresearch.Ourdata

coverseveryoperatorgroup,networkandMVNOinevery

countryworldwide–fromAfghanistantoZimbabwe.Itis

themostaccurateandcompletesetofindustrymetrics

available,comprisingtensofmillionsofindividualdata

points,updateddaily.

GSMAIntelligenceisreliedonbyleadingoperators,

vendors,regulators,financialinstitutionsandthird-party

industryplayers,tosupportstrategicdecision-making

andlong-terminvestmentplanning.Thedataisusedas

anindustryreferencepointandisfrequentlycitedbythe

mediaandbytheindustryitself.

Ourteamofanalystsandexpertsproduceregular

thought-leadingresearchreportsacrossarangeof

industrytopics.

info@

Copyright?2024GSMA

Contents

Executivesummary

2

1.

Themobileindustryinnumbers

10

2.

Mobileindustrytrends

21

2.1

5G:growingglobalmomentumbutstillearlydaysinEurasia

22

2.2

NetworkAPIs:operatorsaimtounlocknewnetworkmonetisation

opportunities

25

2.3

AI:opportunitiesaboundforoperators

27

2.4

Fintech:smartphoneconnectivityfuelsdigitalpayments

28

2.5

Satellite:aerialsolutionsholdpromisetoimproveconnectivity

30

3.

Mobileindustryimpact

32

3.1

Actiononclimatechange

33

3.2

Themobileindustry’simpactontheSDGs

35

4.

Mobileindustryenablers

37

Executive

summary

Growing5Gactivitiesamid

digitalisationambitions

Theearlystagesof5Gdevelopmentareunderway

inEurasia.1Governmentsintheregionare

prioritisingthetechnology’sintegrationinto

nationaldevelopmentplans,andoperatorsareinvestingin5Ginfrastructureandapplications

tomeetthegrowingdemandforenhanced

connectivity.TheEurasiaregionisexpectedtoexperienceasignificantincreasein5Gadoptioninthenextfewyears,basedonareturntostableconditions,withprojectionsrisingfromlessthan1%currentlytojustover40%by2030.Although4Gwillremainthedominanttechnologyfortheforeseeablefuture,4Gadoptionlevelswillbegintodeclinefrom2026as5Ggathersmomentumbecauseoftheavailabilityofmoreaffordable5Gsmartphones.

Mobiletechnologiesandservicescontributed

around$200billiontotheEurasianeconomyin

2023,equivalentto7.9%ofGDP,andsupportedaround770,000jobs(directlyandindirectly)

acrosstheregion.As5Gtakesoff,itsimpactwillbefeltacrossdifferentsectorsoftheeconomy

andby2030,itwillaccountformorethan10%

oftheoveralleconomicimpactofmobile.Whiletheseeconomicbenefitshighlighttheimportanceofmobiletothedigitaleconomy,theyalso

underscoretheneedforcollaborativeeffortsto

closethesignificantdigitaldivideinEurasiaby

extendingcoveragetounderservedareasand

addressingbarrierstotheusageofmobileservices.

1.Unlessotherwisestated,wedefineEurasiainthisreportasArmenia,Azerbaijan,Belarus,Kazakhstan,Kyrgyzstan,Russia,Tajikistan,TurkmenistanandUzbekistan.

GSMA

Executivesummary

2/42

Keytrendsshapingthe

mobileecosystem

Earlydaysfor5GinEurasia

5GispivotalforongoingdigitaltransformationeffortsinEurasia.Currently,sevenoperators

acrossArmenia,Kazakhstan,Tajikistanand

Uzbekistanhaveintroducedcommercial5G

services,albeitwithlimitedcoverage.The

initialfocushasbeenonaddressingincreasingconnectivityneeds,particularlyinhigh-demandurbanareas.5Gfixedwirelessaccess(FWA)

isemergingasapromisingsolution,serving

asalast-miletechnologytoofferbroadband

connectivityforhomesandbusinesses.This

underscores5G’spotentialtobridgeconnectivitygapsandacceleratesocioeconomicdevelopmentacrossEurasia.

OperatorsrallybehindtheGSMAOpenGatewayinitiative

AlthoughithasbeenpossibletoexposenetworkAPIsforsometime,operatorshavestruggled

toadoptastandardisedapproachthatachievesscale.However,recentinitiativesbythemobile

industryhavesoughttobringfreshmomentumbehinddevelopingacommonsetofnetwork

APIs.InFebruary2024,Veonannouncedthe

launchoftheGeolocationGateway,whichuses

theOpenGatewayDeviceLocationAPItoenableapplicationstodeterminethelocationofdevices.TheGeolocationGatewayhasawiderangeof

usecases,includingproximity-basedcommercialservices,fraudreductioninfinancialservicesandlocation-basedemergencyresponses.

AIopportunitiesforoperators

MobileoperatorsintheregionareintegratingAI,particularlygenerativeAI(genAI),toenhance

customerservices,sales,marketingandnetworkmanagement.OperatorssuchasMTSandVeonareincreasinglydevelopingusecases,includingclimate-actionsolutionsandplatformsthat

supportlocallanguagestoimprovethecustomer

experience.Furthermore,operatorsareprioritisingtheethicaluseofAIanddevelopingpartnerships,suchasthecollaborationbetweentheGSMAandIBM.AlthoughinterestisgrowinginEurasia,AI

adoptionremainslimitedintheregion.

GSMA

Executivesummary

3/42

Fintechbeingfuelledbysmartphoneconnectivity

Thefintechindustryhasexperiencedremarkable

growthinEurasiaasdigitalpaymentscontinuetobeadominantservice.KazakhstanandUzbekistaninparticularpossessthrivingfintechlandscapes

thankstoinitiativessuchasopenbankingand

theintroductionofdigitalcurrencies.Diverse

paymentmethods,includingmobilepayments,QRcodetransactionsandbuynow,paylater(BNPL)servicescatertoindividualsandbusinesses,

fosteringfinancialintegration.Operatorsinboth

countrieshaveintroducedmobilepaymentoptionstoexploreopportunitiestogeneraterevenues

beyondcoreservicesandtoenhancethecustomer

Aerialsolutionsholdpromiseto

improveconnectivity

Thechallenginggeographiesandsparse

populationsofEurasiancountrieshighlightthe

significantrolethataerialtechnologiescouldplayinimprovingconnectivity.Collaborationbetweentelecomsoperatorsandsatelliteproviderswill

becrucialtorealisingthispotential.Forsatelliteproviders,partnershipswithoperatorsarecrucialtoscaletheirservicesup,whileoperatorscan

benefitfromimprovedaccesstountappedmarketsinremoteareasandbettersupportemergency

serviceswhereterrestrialsignalsareabsent.

experience.Thefurtherexpansionoffintechin

Eurasiawillofferopportunitiesforoperators,

particularlywithgrowing4Gand5Gadoption.

4/42

Executivesummary

Policiesforgrowth

andinnovation

Policymakersshouldprioritisespectrumpolicy

toenhanceruralcoverage,increasenetwork

capacityinurbanareasandincentivisenetwork

infrastructureinvestmentwhileavoidingrestrictivelicensingterms.Low-bandspectrumisvitalfor

bridgingthedigitalgap,especiallyinsparsely

populatedregions.Mid-bandfrequenciessuchas3.5GHzarecrucialforhigh-speedconnectivity,with6GHzbeingpivotalforfuturegrowth.

Atthesametime,harmonisingEMFruleswithinternationalstandardsisessentialforefficientnetworkdeploymentandtopreservethe

affordabilityofservices.Furthermore,taxreforms,particularlythereductionofsector-specificfees

andcorporatetaxes,areneededtoencourageinvestmentinmobileinfrastructureandpromoteeconomicgrowthinEurasia.

Low-bandspectrumisvitalforbridgingthedigitalgap,especiallyinsparselypopulatedregions

GSMA

Executivesummary

5/42

Mobileinternet

users

2023

2030

2023

2030

167m

68%penetrationrate*

171m

69%penetrationrate*

CAGR

2023-2030

0.4%

*Percentageofpopulation

4G

Percentageofconnections

(excludinglicensedcellularIoT)

5G

69%

52%

Percentageofconnections

(excludinglicensedcellularIoT)

030

TheMobileEconomyEurasia

Unique

mobile

subscribers

191m

78%penetrationrate*

200m

80%penetrationrate*

0.6%

*Percentageofpopulation

CAGR

2023-2030

2030

2023

SIM

connections

(excludinglicensedcellularIoT)

333m

136%penetrationrate*

337m

135%penetrationrate*

0.2%

*Percentageofpopulation

CAGR

2023-2030

2030

2023

investment

Mobile's

contributiontoGDP

2023$21bn

2030$23bn

Totalrevenues

2023$200bn

7.9%ofGDP

2030$220bn

Operatorcapexfortheperiod2023–2030:

$32bn

Smartphones

Percentageofconnections

%

Operator

revenuesand

Licensedcellular

IoTconnections

202357m

2030104m

Totalrevenues

Public

funding

Employment

2023

$14bn

ftli

andspectrumfees)

2023

530,000

Jobsdirectlysupportedbythemobileecosystem

Plus240,000indirectjobs

8/42

Executivesummary

Belarus

Kazakhstan

Uzbekistan

SubscriberandtechnologytrendsforselectedEurasianmarkets

Technologymix

66

2030

2G3G

58

Subscriberpenetration2023

Smartphoneadoption2023

89%

93%

88%

93%

4G5G

2030

2023

39%

25%

2030

Technologymix

66

2030

2G3G

1%

42%K0%

Subscriberpenetration2023

Smartphoneadoption2023

202330%

83%

94%

59%

61%

4G5G

2030

47%

2030

Subscriberpenetration

2023

2030

88%

90%

Smartphoneadoption2023

83%

2030

2G3G

Technologymix

76

4422%K582030

4G5G

Russia

2023

93%

58%

16%

Technologymix

48

2030

2G3G

2%

4949%20%

K

Subscriberpenetration2023

Smartphoneadoption2023

60%

62%

86%

93%

4G5G

2030

2023

29%

2030

Note:Totalsmaynotaddupduetorounding

9/42

Executivesummary

01

Themobileindustry

innumbers

Eurasiawillhave

200million

subscribersby

2030

Bytheendof2023,191millionpeopleinEurasia

(78%ofthepopulation)subscribedtoamobile

service.Therewillbealmost9millionadditional

subscribersovertheperiodto2030,reflectingtheeffortsofthemobileindustrytobridgethedigitaldivideandincreasecoverage.

Althoughtheindustrycontinuestoinvestin

innovativesolutionsandpartnershipstoextend

connectivitytostillunderservedandfar-flung

communities,theadoptionofmobileinternet

serviceshasnotkeptpacewiththeexpansionof

networkcoverage.Thishasresultedinasignificantusagegap.In2023,theusagegapwaswidestin

TurkmenistanandTajikistanataround51%and48%ofthepopulation,respectively,whiletheusagegapwaslowestinRussiaandArmeniaatbelow25%,comparedtotheglobalaverageof37%.

Figure1

Eurasia:mobileinternetconnectivity,2023

Percentageofpopulation

Coveragegap

Usagegap

Connected

1.0%0.2%0%4%10%2%10%10%10%4%

24%

33%

37%

47%

48%

80%

75%

68%

58%

49%

43%

39%

ArmeniaAzerbaijanBelarusKazakhstanKyrgyzstanRussiaTajikistanTurkmenistanUzbekistanGlobal

Source:GSMAIntelligence

45%

45%

42%

47%

67%

18%

31%

51%

Themobileindustryinnumbers

11/42

Growing4G

adoptionispavingthewayfor5G

4GadoptioninEurasiawillcontinuetoriseuntil

2025,with5Gpoisedforsignificantgrowth

thereafter.Despitetheanticipated5Ggrowth,

operatorswillcontinuetoprioritisetheexpansionof4Gcapacityinurbanareasandextendcoveragetounderservedregionsinthemediumterm,

aimingtoboostconsumeradoption.In2023,

Beelinecompleteditsupgradestosupportthe4Gexperienceonitsnetworktocover14regionsof

Uzbekistan,providing4Gacross54citiesand137districts.AcrossEurasia,4Gaccountedfor69%oftotalconnectionsin2023,withthisfigureexpectedtoreach81%by2025.

Figure2

Eurasia:mobileadoptionbytechnology

Percentageoftotalconnections

90%

80%

70%

60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%

20232024202520262027202820292030

4G52%

5G41%

3G6%

1%

Source:GSMAIntelligence

2G

Themobileindustryinnumbers

12/42

55%

425m

LatinAmerica

RestofMENA

Eurasia

347m

138m

5Gadoptionintheregiontosurpass40%by2030

5GiscurrentlyavailableinArmenia,Kazakhstan,TajikistanandUzbekistan,withmorecountriesinEurasiaexpectedtolaunchthetechnologyinthecomingyears.Someoperatorshaveannounced

planstoacceleratenetworkrollouts.Forexample,KcellandTele2(KazakhtelecomGroup)planto

deploymorethan2,7005Gbasestationsin2024andaroundanother3,200in2025.Meanwhile,inUzbekistan,PerfectumMobileandNokiaaimtolauncha5GnetworkbyOctober2024.However,mostoperatorsarelikelytotakeaphased

approachto5Gdeployment,rollingoutnetworksinurbanareasfirstandexpandingcoverage

asdemandrisesinotherareas.5GFWAisalso

gainingmomentumintheregion,improvingthe

coverageof5Gtechnology.Thesetrendswill

continuetogainmomentuminthecomingyearsastheaffordabilityof5Gdevicesimproves.

Figure3

5Gadoption

2024-2030increase

2023

Percentageoftotalconnections

Leading5Gmarkets

GCCstates

DevelopedAsiaPacific*

NorthAmerica

GreaterChina

Europe

95%93%90%88%

81%

5Gconnections

(2030)

99m

296m

443m

1.69bn

654m

Emerging5Gmarkets

44%

41%

RestofAsiaPacific

Sub-SaharanAfrica

40%

17%

1.14bn

234m

*Australia,Japan,NewZealand,SingaporeandSouthKorea

Source:GSMAIntelligence

Themobileindustryinnumbers

13/42

500

450

400

350

300

250

200

150

100

50

MobiledatatrafficinEurasiatogrow

threefoldbetween2023and2030

Monthlymobiledatatrafficperconnectionin

Eurasiaisprojectedtoreach40GBby2030,

drivenbyincreasing4G,andsubsequently5G,

adoption.Anincreaseintheavailabilityoflocallyrelevantonlinecontentandservices,including

e-governmentservicesandsocialmediaplatforms,isalsodrivingdataconsumption.

However,affordabilityremainsabarrier,as

countriessuchasKyrgyzstan,Tajikistanand

Turkmenistanhavenotreachedtheaffordability

targetof2%ofmonthlygrossnationalincomepercapitatargetsetbytheBroadbandCommission.

Socialtariffswithreduceddataallowancestailoredtolow-incomesubscriberscanenhanceinclusivity.Deviceaffordabilityshouldalsobeconsideredtospur5Gadoption.

Figure4

Globalmobiledatatraffic

EBpermonth

0

20232024202520262027202820292030

Sub-SaharanAfrica

Eurasia

LatinAmerica

MENA

GreaterChina

NorthAmerica

Europe

AsiaPacific*

Mobiledatatrafficperconnection(GBpermonth)

Region

2023

2030

CAGR2023–2030

AsiaPacific*

14

53

21%

Eurasia

13

40

18%

Europe

17

71

22%

GreaterChina

13

54

23%

LatinAmerica

7

32

23%

MENA

10

31

18%

NorthAmerica

29

90

17%

Sub-SaharanAfrica

2

9

23%

*AsiaPacificexcludesGreaterChina

Source:GSMAIntelligence

Themobileindustryinnumbers

14/42

Over100millionIoTconnectionsin

Eurasiaby2030

LicensedcellularIoTconnectionsinEurasia

areexpectedtonearlydoublebetween2023and2030,reaching104millionby2030.RussiaisexpectedtoleadonIoTdeploymentswith

93millionconnectionsby2030,followedby

Kazakhstanwith4millionconnectionsbythesameyear.

Government-leddigitaldevelopmentinitiativeswilldriveIoTexpansion,withpotentialapplications

intransportation,smartcities,agricultureand

climateaction.Kazakhstan'sadoptionofanationalNB-IoTstandardin2023hasspurredinterestin

theIoTmarketamongstakeholders,including

manufacturersandsuppliersofsmartdevicesandNB-IoTsolutions.Suchinitiativesofferoperatorsanopportunitytodiversifyanddevelopsolutionsacrossverticalsectors.

Figure5

LicensedcellularIoTconnections

Eurasia

Restoftheworld

Billion

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

0

62m

104m

20232024202520262027202820292030

Source:GSMAIntelligence

Themobileindustryinnumbers

15/42

By2030,mobile

revenueswillreach$23billioninEurasia

MobilerevenuegrowthinEurasiaisexpectedtomoderateinthecomingyearsasinvestmentsin5Ginfrastructureincrease.Capexisexpectedtoreducebetween2028and2030,basedonstableregionalconditions,asoperatorsaimtorealise

returnsfromtheir5Ginvestmentsandagrowinguserbase.

Giventhehighcostsofdeployingphysical

infrastructureformobilebroadbandinruralareas,investmentinalternativetechnologysolutions

suchassatellitebackhaulandsolar/wind-poweredbasestations,aswellasinnovativepartnerships

betweenstakeholders,remaincrucialforextendingnetworkcoverage.Furthermore,growinginterestintheadoptionoftechnologiessuchasAIand

IoTcanenhanceoperators'efficiencyandunlockrevenuediversificationopportunities.

Figure6

Eurasia:mobilerevenueandcapextorevenue

Billion

$30

20%

17%

$0

20232024202520262027202820292030

Source:GSMAIntelligence

Capextorevenue(%)

Revenue

19%19%

$20

20%

20%

$25

$10

14%

$15

17%

$5

Themobileindustryinnumbers

16/42

Mobileadded

$200billionof

economicvaluetotheEurasian

economyin2023

In2023,mobiletechnologiesandservicesgenerated7.9%ofGDPacrossEurasia,a

contributionthatamountedto$200billionof

economicvalueadded.Thegreatestbenefitscamefromtheproductivityeffectsreaching$160billion,followedbymobileoperators,whichgenerated

$15billion.

Themobileecosystemcomprisesthreecategories:mobileoperators;infrastructureandequipment

providers;andcontentandservices.The

infrastructureandequipmentproviderscategoryincludesnetworkequipmentproviders,device

manufacturersandIoTcompanies.Meanwhile,

contentandservicesencompasscontent,mobileapplicationandserviceproviders,distributorsandretailers,andmobilecloudservices.

Figure7

Eurasia:totaleconomiccontributionofmobile,2023

Billion

$200

Mobileecosystem

6.5%

7.9%

$10

0.2%

$15

0.4%

0.6%

Mobile

operators

Source:GSMAIntelligence

Infrastructure

and

equipment

providers

Contentandservices

Productivity

$160

Indirect

0.2%

$10

Total

$5

Themobileindustryinnumbers

17/42

Mobile'seconomic

contributiontoreach$220billionby2030

By2030,mobile’scontributionwillreach$220

billioninEurasia,drivenmostlybythecontinuedexpansionofthemobileecosystemandverticalsincreasinglybenefitingfromtheimprovementsinproductivityandefficiencybroughtaboutbythetake-upofmobileservices.

Figure8

Economicimpactofmobile

Billion

$200

2023

Source:GSMAIntelligence

$220

2030

Themobile

ecosysteminEurasiasupported770,000

jobsin2023

Mobileoperatorsandthewidermobileecosystem

provideddirectemploymenttoapproximately530,000peopleinEurasiain2023.Inaddition,economicactivityintheecosystemgeneratedaround240,000jobsinothersectors,meaningthataround770,000jobsweredirectlyor

indirectlysupported.

Figure9

Eurasia:employmentimpactofthemobileecosystem,2023

Jobs(thousand)

240

770

530

Indirect

Source:GSMAIntelligence

Direct

Total

Themobileindustryinnumbers

18/42

Thefiscal

contributionofthemobileecosystemreached$14billionin2023

In2023,themobilesectorinEurasiamadea

substantialcontributiontothefundingofthe

publicsector,witharound$14billionraised

throughtaxes.AlargecontributionwasdrivenbyservicesVAT,salestaxesandexciseduties

($5billion),followedbyemploymenttaxesandsocialsecurity($4billion).

Figure10

Eurasia:fiscalcontributionofthemobileecosystem,2023

Billion

$4

$1

$14

$5

HandsetVAT,

salestaxes,

exciseand

customsduties

Note:Totalsmaynotaddupduetorounding

Source:GSMAIntelligence

Employment

taxesandsocial

security

ServicesVAT,

salestaxesand

exciseduties

Corporatetaxesonprofits

Total

$3

Themobileindustryinnumbers

19/42

5Gwilladdalmost$23billiontotheEurasianeconomyin2030

5GisexpectedtobenefittheEurasianeconomyby$23billionin2030,accountingformorethan10%oftheoveralleconomicimpactofmobile.Muchofthe5Gbenefitwillmaterialiseovertheperiodto

2030,ascountriesinEurasiaareintheearlystagesofdeployment.Theeconomicbenefitsof5Gwill

increaseasthetechnologystartstoachievescaleandwidespreadadoption.

While5Gisexpectedtobenefitmostsectorsof

theEurasianeconomy,someindustrieswillbenefitmorethanothersduetotheirabilitytoincorporate5Gusecasesintheirbusiness.Between2023

and2030,28%ofthebenefitsareexpectedto

originatefromtheservicessector,22%from

manufacturing–drivenbyapplicationsinsmartfactories,smartgridsandIoT-enabledproducts–and21%fromoilandgas,utilitiesmanagement,constructionandagriculture.

Figure11

Eurasia:annual5Gcontributionbyindustry

Billion

Other

Retail

Utilitiesmanagement,construction,oilandgas,agriculture

ICT

Manufacturing

Services(publicadministration,finance,healthcare,education)

$25

$20

$15

$10

$5

$0

5%

19%

21%

5%

22%

28%

20232024202520262027202820292030

Source:GSMAIntelligence

Themobileindustryin

numbers

20/42

02

Mobileindustry

trends

2.1

5G:growingglobalmomentumbutstillearlydaysinEurasia

5Gtechnologyisnowavailableinmorethan

100countriesaroundtheworld.AsofFebruary

2024,291operatorsin112countrieshadlaunchedcommercial5Gservices.GSMAIntelligence

datashowsthatthenumberof5Gconnections

willreach2billiongloballybytheendof2024,

accountingfornearlyaquarteroftotalmobile

connections.Inseveralpioneercountries,notablyChina,SouthKoreaandtheUS,5Gadoptionhasreachedmass-marketlevels,whereitaccountsformorethanhalfoftotalconnections.

Themajorityof5Gnetworkshavebeen

constructedusingnon-standalone(NSA)

architecture,prioritisingwide-areacoverage,

capacityandreliability.However,thereis

agrowingshifttowardsstandalone(SA)

architectureandnewstandards,whichwillhelp

unlockinnovative5Gapplicationsandgenerate

newrevenuestreams.AsofFebruary2024,51

operatorsgloballyofferedcommercial5GservicesonSAnetworks,whilemorethanhalfofoperatorssurveyedintheGSMAIntelligenceNetwork

TransformationSurvey2023expecttodeploy5G-Advancedwithinayearafterstandardsarereleasedaspartof3GPPRelease18in2024.

GSMA

Mobileindustrytrends

22/42

Tajikistan

CountriesinEurasiatakeinitialstepstowards5G

5GwillplayanimportantroleinEurasia’s

connectivitylandscape.Inrecentyears,

governmentsacrosstheregionhaveannounced

nationaldevelopmentplans,withtheintention

ofleveraging5Gtechnologiestodrivedigital

transformationacrossindustriesandwidersociety.Uzbekistan’sDigitalUzbekistan2030strategy

andKazakhstan’sDigitalKazakhstanstrategyareexamplesofinitiativesthataimtouseadvanced

mobilenetworks,suchas5G,totransformsociety.

Sevenoperatorsfromfourmarketsintheregion(Armenia,Kazakhstan,TajikistanandUzbekistan)havelaunchedcommercial5Gnetworks,albeit

withlimitedcoverage.Accesstospectrumfor

5Gnetworksisacrucialsteptowardsthelaunchofcommercialservices.InArmenia,thePublicServicesRegulatoryCommissionhasawardedlicencesforspectruminthe700and800MHzbandsfor5Gservices.InKazakhstan,TajikistanandUzbekistan,regulatorshaveassignedmid-bandspectrumfor5Gservicestooperators.

The700MHzbandhasbeenauctionedfor5GinKazakhstanandwasalreadylicensedfor4GinUzbekistan.However,thereisstillaneed

forregionalTVbroadcastingreplanningand

harmonisationofthe700MHzbandfor4Gand5Gnetworks.

Figure12

Plannedcommercial5Gnetwork

Livecommercial5Gnetwork=

5GlandscapeinEurasia

Russia

Uzbekistan

Kazakhstan

Kyrgyzstan

Armenia

Azerbaijan

Turkmenistan

Source:GSMAIntelligence

GSMA

Mobileindustrytrends

23/42

5Gmomentumisalsobuildingelsewhere,with

ongoing5Gtrialsinseveralcountries,including

Azerbaijan,KyrgyzstanandRussia.InKyrgyzstan,forexample,O!istesting5Ginthen77andn78

(3400–3800MHz)frequencyrangesandwill

initiallyintegrateits5Gnetworkwithexisting4Gnetworks.Thiswillbeinlinewiththemovebythemajorityofoperatorstoinitiallylaunch5GonNSAarchitecture.However,5GSAappearstobeon

thehorizoninEurasia;atMWCBarcelona2024,PerfectumMobilesignedadealwithNokiaandUzbekistan’sMinistryofDigitalDevelopmenttodeploya5GSAnetworkinUzbekistan.

Meanwhile,Belarusappearstobeleaningtowardsthesinglewholesalenetwork(SWN)model

for5Gdeployment,asitalreadyimplementedaSWNfor4G.InJanuary2024,thecountry’s

CouncilforStrategicProjects,taskedwith

evaluatingdeploymentoptionsfor5Gnetworks,chosecommoninfrastructureoverfree-for-all

competition.2However,theuseofSWNsfor4G

and5Gserviceshavebeenlargelyunsuccessfulinothermarkets,giventhesignificantlimitationsofthismodel.

Forexample,Malaysiaisintheprocessof

implementingadualwholesalenetwork(DWN)followingchalleng