Visible progress has been made toward network readiness and availability of 5G telecommunications in the first quarter of 2021, after delays last year resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic, sources have told Fastmarkets.
To date this year, there has been already a significant ramping-up of the uptake of 5G devices. The Global Mobile Suppliers Association (GSA), in its 5G devices summary for March 2021, reported that the number of 5G devices commercially available has risen by more than 28% over the past quarter, and was now at 431 commercial 5G devices, representing 61.3% of all announced 5G devices for the year.Infrastructure spending in this area has accelerated globally too, and this figure was likely to grow exponentially. According to estimates from the Chinese Academy of Engineering, the total number of 5G base stations in China could reach more than 1.7 million by the end of 2021, exceeding by far the 700,000 5G base stations built in 2020.
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