NEW DELHI: Shipments of 5G-enabled fixed wireless access (FWA) consumer premises equipment (CPE) are expected to account for 42% of all FWA CPE shipments in 2024, up from 34% in 2023, according to a study released by the GSA 4G/5G Fixed Wireless Access Forum on Wednesday.
Shipments of 5G-enabled FWA reached 10.2 million in 2023. In comparison, 4G FWA CPE shipments declined by 5% between 2022 and 2023. According to the study, less than half of respondents will launch a new 4G CPE product this year.
The survey shows “without a doubt that 5G FWA has entered the mainstream,” said John Yazlle, vice chair of the GSA 4G/5G FWA Forum. “Not only has the growth in supplier shipments been significantly focused on 5G-capable CPE devices, but operators also see FWA as a key driver for monetizing their investments in 5G networks.”
According to the results, innovations such as 5G Standalone (SA), Reduced Capability (RedCap), millimeter wave (mmWave) and self-installable outdoor CPEs will accelerate the growth of 5G FWA services worldwide.
According to the Global Mobile Suppliers Association (GSA), FWA CPE shipments are expected to increase 23% to 37.5 million units in 2024. In comparison, total reported CPE shipments in 2023 were 30.4 million, up 2% from 2022.
“Different regions drove 5G FWA shipment growth in 2023, in contrast to 2022 when most shipments were concentrated in North America,” it said.
India is contributing to the upward trend in 5G FWA shipments, with 86% of these shipments being 5G-enabled, followed by North America (65%) and the rest of Asia Pacific (39%).
In India, Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel are commercially offering their 5G fixed-line broadband services to consumers and businesses to monetize their fifth-generation networks.
The GSA 4G/5G Fixed Wireless Access Forum was founded in late 2020 by 14 founding partners and members and now includes 56 members covering the majority of the infrastructure, chipset, module and CPE value chain for FWA.
Data for this survey was collected between May and June 2024 and included vendors such as Nokia, Huawei, ZTE, Zyxel, Xiamen Four-Faith, Airgain, Asiatelco Technologies Co and Askey.
