GSA said that the manufacturing sector was the largest private networks adopter
A new report from the Global mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) found that at least 794 organizations in 68 countries and territories are deploying private mobile networks based on LTE or 5G technologies.
The GSA report noted that LTE remains the favored technology for private mobile network deployments worldwide, although it states 5G is being used by around 37% of customers tracked in its study.
The association has also identified more than 70 telecom network operators involved with Private Mobile Network projects.
The new report reveals that a large number and a wide range of market participants are actively engaged in developing and delivering solutions for Private Mobile Networks. Among the 794 organizations known to be deploying LTE or 5G Private Mobile Networks, the manufacturing sector seems to be the largest adopter with 140 identified companies involved in known pilots or deployments, up from 111 at the end of 2021. The education sector is the second most-common group, with 80 customer deployments, followed by mining companies (69) and power utility companies (68).
Within the manufacturing sector, GSA report shows there are 71 discrete manufacturing customer deployments, compared with 42 process manufacturing, with an additional 27 to be confirmed. Of the subcategories, automotive has the most customer deployments, followed by electrical equipment, appliances and components, and then computer, electronic and optical products.
Also, GSA noted that global-scale cloud providers are offering private mobile network solutions, sometimes in partnership with mobile operators or network suppliers.
“A large number and a wide range of organizations are heavily engaged in developing and delivering solutions for Private Mobile Networks,” said Joe Barrett, president of the Global mobile Suppliers Association. “Organizations of all types, whether they are in the manufacturing, education or automotive sector are investing and deploying networks that will drive automation and productivity. Through LTE and increasingly 5G, organizations are betting on Private Networks and what they can deliver.
“The Private Mobile Networks market is a substantial ecosystem where organizations are collaborating with vendors to make Private Networks a reality. Currently we are tracking over 50 equipment vendors that have been involved in the supply of equipment for Private Mobile Networks based on LTE or 5G,” Barrett continued.
“With this ecosystem now in place, with so many opportunities, and so many regulators planning initiatives to make spectrum available for LTE and 5G private usage, we expect significant market developments over the next couple of years,” Barrett concluded.
GSA said it defines a Private Mobile Network as a 3GPP-based 4G/LT-5G private mobile network intended for the sole use of private entities such as enterprises, industries or governments, that is not offered to the general public and uses spectrum defined in 3GPP.