Global 5G IoT roaming connection to reach 142 million by 2027: Report

The global number of 5G IoT (Internet of Things)  roaming connections will reach 142 million by 2027 from the 15 million at present, a report by Juniper research stated.

The growth is expected to be driven by the development of 5G standalone deployments with increased rollout in home markets providing increased momentum and a strong value proposition for 5G standalone-specific roaming agreements.

Details of the report

IoT roaming enables a mobile subscriber on different networks to seamlessly connect devices across countries using a single SIM from the same service provider. 

A standalone network by definition provides greater network functionality over non-standalone 5G networks by leveraging next-generation network cores to provide greater network speeds and latency to 5G IoT roaming connections, improving the value proposition of a roaming model, the report stated.

The report further highlights the prominence of West Europe as a key market for 5G IoT Roaming. Around 21 per cent of the global 5G IoT roaming connections will be inducted in West Europe. The figures are expected to be impressive because the region only represents 5 per cent of the global population. 

The main reason for a significance in the European region is the efforts by operators to launch and initiate 5G standalone networks. Certainly, this is considered as a key incentive for a robust business model driving the use of IoT roaming connections.

“To further capitalise on the growth of 5G IoT roaming in West Europe, operators must form roaming agreements that leverage standalone 5G networks to improve network performance for roaming connections, and provide the same level of service when roaming as they do on home networks.” said report author Elisha Sudlow

The report also urged operators to implement roaming analytics tools and leverage the use of AI for generating more revenue.