A regional report on the mobile economy was launched at the GSMA Digital Nation Summit in Singapore, which explores the critical role mobile technology has in driving economic growth and creating a more inclusive digital future for the Asia-Pacific region (APAC). The report forecast that the mobile industry's contribution to Asia Pacific's economy will grow beyond US$1 T by 2030, with faster adoption of 5G technologies in the region meaning it will exceed average global growth rates.
The GSMA's new Mobile Economy Asia Pacific 2024 report shows that mobile technologies and services generated 5.3% of GDP across Asia Pacific in 2023, a contribution that amounted to US$880 B of economic value. Thirteen million jobs were created, and the greatest benefits came from the productivity effects of mobile services and digital transformation on industries such as manufacturing and fintech.
Mobile's contribution to the APAC economy over the period of 2023-2030 will outpace the global average, growing by 15% in the region, compared to the global average growth of 12%. Commercial 5G standalone (SA) networks, now present in seven APAC countries (Australia, India, Japan, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, and Thailand), will help fuel this growth, alongside 5G Advanced, RedCap and AI. This focus on advanced 5G networks and services is expected to kickstart a new round of 5G investments in 2024 and beyond, and lay the foundation for the next wave of 5G.
The authors of the report, GSMA Intelligence, expect 5G to add almost US$130 B to the Asia Pacific economy in 2030, with the manufacturing industry forecast to benefit the most, driven by new 5G-enabed applications including smart factories, smart grids, and Internet of Things (IoT)-enabled products. Financial services and public administration are also expected to benefit significantly as they turn to 5G to digitally transform services and operations.
To help support this growth the GSMA has also launched the GSMA APAC Fintech Forum, a new community programme to unite the connected fintech and commerce sectors with Asia Pacific’s mobile network operators through new technologies. The vision of the forum is to accelerate innovation and integration of mobile networks to advance the mobile economy and nurture digital trust as the foundation
for sustainable and inclusive digital nations in the region.
The Mobile Economy report has also highlighted the need for greater collaboration in the fintech space. The report said that with the rise of cybercriminals targeting consumers and businesses, particularly in the area of online payments and financial services, it is crucial governments, mobile operators and other digital ecosystem players work together to build consumer trust and online safety.
The fintech forum builds on the GSMA Open Gateway initiative, launched in 2023 and supported by over 280 mobile operators worldwide, serving two thirds of the world's mobile users. Recently launched online security and anti-fraud application programming interfaces (APIs) are now starting to be used by banks and online retailers to mitigate identity fraud and transaction risks.
Asia Pacific mobile operators have been particularly proactive in this area, with operators in Australia, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam committing to launch more online security services.
Other trends shaping the mobile ecosystem in Asia Pacific include continued momentum on open APIs, satellites and non-terrestrial networks (NTNs), the revenue opportunities presented by generative AI (gen AI) and continued vigilance around online safety in an increasingly digital world. Report highlights include:
- Mobile Internet users in APAC will grow from 1.4 B (51% penetration rate) to 1.8 B (61% penetration rate) in 2030.
- Mobile data traffic in Asia Pacific will quadruple between 2023 and 2030, driven by an increase in data-intensive content and growth in 5G adoption.
- Satellites and non-terrestrial networks can help reduce the connectivity gap, by bringing communications to the region's challenging terrains – including archipelagos, rainforests, deserts, and mountain ranges – where traditional infrastructure is expensive and difficult to build.
- Operators across APAC are harnessing the power of gen AI to drive internal transformations and seize new revenue streams through AI investment. For example, operators including Singtel, SK Telecom, Softbank and e& have formed the Global Telco Alliance to co-develop their own telecoms-specific AI models, benefiting from a global customer base of 1.3 billion across 50 countries.
Singtel has also noted that while APAC countries like Singapore, South Korea, Australia, Japan, and New Zealand rank as some of the world’s most digitally-advanced nations, parts of the region still remain unconnected, despite most of them being within areas of mobile coverage. This usage gap has been high in markets such as Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan, the company noted, listing barriers to adoption like the lack of affordability, particularly for devices, and a lack of digital skills, particularly among older citizens.
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| Source: GSMA infographic. There will be 2.1 B unique mobile subscribers by 2030, a penetration rate of 70%. |
"Asia’s rapid adoption, and invention, of new mobile digital services is bringing new use cases to life, that the rest of the world can learn from.”
“The large 5G investments mobile operators and governments are making puts many of Asia Pacific’s nations in a leading position to secure strong economic growth, unleashing a new era of innovation, particularly in sectors such as fintech and manufacturing.
"However, in other parts of Asia Pacific, hundreds of millions of people are still missing out. Addressing this usage gap and building online trust are crucial to closing this digital divide and ensuring everyone can benefit from the life-enhancing applications mobile can provide in area such as finance, education, and health,” he added.
Yuen Kuan Moon, Singtel Group CEO, added: "We see the exponential rise in enterprise mobile applications and solutions as a big boost to businesses, especially given the emergence of gen AI and the shift to the cloud as digitalisation continues to accelerate. This is why we've been working with many industry leaders to leverage intelligence, machine learning and robotics and cloudification to improve their productivity and customer engagement as well as innovate and scale their operations.
"While we ensure that our customers are well-supported in their digital transformation journey, we're also mindful of the need to continue to provide vulnerable groups with access to digital tools so they too can be empowered and engaged in a digital economy."
Delegates attending this year’s edition of M360 Asia Pacific in Seoul (1-2 October) will have the opportunity to hear from thought leaders and attend keynotes and panel discussions covering the key topics from the Mobile Economy APAC 2024 report, including how AI is reshaping business services, 5G acceleration and IoT.
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