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Contents
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY2
1INDUSTRY OVERVIEW8
1.1328 million subscribers in North America by 20259
1.2US and Canada are global leaders in mobile11
1.3Financials: muted revenue outlook, while capex sees calm
before the 5G storm2MOBILE CONTRIBUTING TO ECONOMIC GROWTH20
2.1The direct economic contribution of the mobile ecosystem21
2.2Indirect and productivity impacts of mobile technology22
2.3Employment and public funding contribution23
2.4Five-year outlook25
3EVOLUTION OF THE NORTH AMERICAN
MOBILE ECOSYSTEM
26
3.1Mobile operators seeking content capabilities27
3.2Networks evolving to meet future demand29
3.3Scaling IoT34
3.4A vibrant startup ecosystem supporting future innovation37North America is the benchmark for migration
to next-generation services
Executive
Summary
By the end of 2017, the number of unique
mobile subscribers in North America
exceeded 300 million, accounting for 84%
of the population. By 2025, there will be 328
million subscribers across the region, or 86%
of the population. With many subscribers
owning more than one connected device,
there were 374 million mobile connections
across North America in 2017; this will
grow to around 420 million by 2025 (109%
penetration). In addition, licensed cellular
IoT will be a major driver of connections
growth in North America, reaching 515 million
by 2025, up from just under 100 million in
2017. This will bring the total number of
connections in North America to 933 million
by 2025.
High subscriber penetration coupled with
historically high consumer spend on mobile
services means the mobile market in North
America was worth $260 billion in revenues in
2017. The US is the largest market worldwide
in terms of revenue – about 40% greater than
China, bigger than the entire European mobile
market, and larger than CIS, Latin America,
MENA and Sub-Saharan Africa combined.
The region is a benchmark for rapid
migration to next-generation devices and
networks. North America has the highest
levels of mobile internet penetration, mobile
broadband and smartphone adoption
globally, and the second highest subscriber
penetration rate (behind Europe). This is
primarily driven by the US, which is in the top
10 markets worldwide by smartphone and
4G adoption.
Executive Summary2
The Mobile Economy North America 2018。