A study from Juniper Research has found that operator‑billed 5G service revenue will hit $315 billion (€320.7 billion) in 2023, representing annual growth of over 60 per cent. However, the company warned that achieving additional revenue outside of subscriptions was still a work in progress.

Despite spending billions of dollars to create their 5G networks and services, mobile carriers have had trouble generating additional income beyond serving consumer devices.

According to the company, standalone 5G‘s capacity to provide network slicing is the best foundation for the growth of 5G private network revenue. A “slice” of the public 5G infrastructure can be made available to private customers via network slicing technology, which is supported by next-generation core networks for standalone 5G. This in turn lowers the cost of private 5G network hardware and raises its value proposition, all against a background of deteriorating macroeconomic conditions.

The report forecast there would be more than 600 new 5G subscriptions in 2023 – the anticipated economic crisis notwithstanding.

Juniper Research points to the fact that more than 80 percent of global operator-billed revenues will be attributable to 5G connections by 2027, adding that more than 95 percent of global next-generation connections will be personal connected devices, including smartphones, tablets, and broadband routers.

Research co-author Olivia Williams noted that despite the expected growth of IoT, revenue from consumer connections would continue to be “the cornerstone of 5G operator revenue increase”.