Why 5G has a bright future: International roaming, Vo5G usage, standalone deployments & AI

5G is going places with reports predicting high revenues in the next five years as international travel picks up after the pandemic lull. Other factors include higher amount of minutes of Vo5G (Voice-over-5G) usage and high number of 5G standalone deployments. While with all this revenue comes massive amounts of data, AI (Artificial Intelligence) provides the opportunity for analytics.

International Roaming

Juniper Research found that the value of the retail roaming market will reach US$19 billion by 2027 globally; a substantial increase from $10 billion in 2022. This 98% revenue growth owing to both an increase in the number of 5G roaming subscribers across key international travel corridors between North America, Europe and Asia Pacific, and data generated by these new 5G connections whilst roaming internationally.

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This increase in roaming data will be owing to new devices, such as cellular-enabled laptops, wearables and tablets. As this growth will create a need for operator reliance on roaming vendors to manage the ever-growing complexity of roaming ecosystems, vendors such as Mobileum, Tata Communications, and Syniverse, will see a spike in business.

International travel will return to pre-pandemic levels by 2024, creating a need for roaming vendors to provide solutions that enable operators to create novel roaming services

The report predicts that international travel will return to pre-pandemic levels by 2024, creating a need for roaming vendors to provide solutions that enable operators to create novel roaming services, such as real?time self-management platforms protecting subscribers from data overuse whilst roaming. Roaming revenue from international travel is about to go up.

Voice-over-5G

Another Juniper Research report found that the total minutes of Vo5G (Voice-over-5G) usage will reach 4.7 trillion in 2028, representing 42% of total minutes and an increase of over 500% from 2023. Voice-over-5G utilises the 5G network core to provide enhanced voice services, including ultra-high voice definition and the ability to integrate IP-based solutions over voice.

We can expect operators to develop enterprise-facing solutions, monetising the rise in demand of 5G voice services from enterprises with new services such as programmable voice, call masking and flash calling to maximise 5G voice revenue

We can expect operators to develop enterprise-facing solutions, monetising the rise in demand of 5G voice services from enterprises with new services such as programmable voice, call masking and flash calling to maximise 5G voice revenue. Additionally, 5G networks will enable operators to better compete against OTT voice services, as 5G allows for swift deployments of new technologies, such as voice firewalls, which can block fraudulent voice traffic in real-time.

5G Standalone Deployments

Another report also predicts that global number of 5G IoT roaming connections will rise from 15 million in 2023 to 142 million by 2027, representing over 27% of all 5G roaming connections in four years. This growth will be driven by a high number of 5G standalone deployments, with intensifying roll outs in home markets providing increased momentum and a strong value proposition for 5G standalone-specific roaming agreements.

Standalone networks provide greater network functionality over non-standalone 5G networks by leveraging next-generation network cores to provide these greater network speeds and latency to 5G IoT roaming connections, improving the value proposition of a roaming model.

AI

However, in addition to 5G standalone-specific roaming agreements, operators could implement roaming analytics tools that leverage AI to maximise roaming revenue, as they enable operators to efficiently assess the significant amount of roaming data generated by 5G roaming connections in real time. The need for such advanced roaming solutions are likely to rise because of upcoming verticals like autonomous vehicles, owing to their data-centric nature.

The need for such advanced roaming solutions are likely to rise because of upcoming verticals like autonomous vehicles, owing to their data-centric nature

In March, a Juniper Research study predicted that the total number of 5G roaming connections will increase from 53 million in 2023 to 526 million by 2027. The research identified AI-based real-time analytics and roaming fraud mitigation services as critical solutions that will enable operators to protect their networks against an influx of data traffic from roaming subscribers.

With a steady growth of 5G roamers, the emerging traffic analytics and anti?fraud solutions must enable the enhanced identification and authentication of roaming connections over 5G networks. However, given the increased complexity of 5G networks, it anticipates current roaming analytics services will be insufficient in monitoring 5G roaming connections, and the subsequent increase in mobile roaming data. Hence, the need for AI.

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In conclusion, the telecommunications industry is on the cusp of a transformative era, propelled by the exponential growth of 5G roaming, Vo5G, and AI-driven solutions. This data-driven evolution heralds a future where telecom providers must embrace innovation to thrive in an increasingly interconnected world.