Russia to lead the spread of 5G in the Commonwealth of Independent States

In a report entitled ‘Mobile economy: Russia and CIS 2019’ published by GSMA it was revealed that Russia will lead the spread of 5G network in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) with an adoption rate of 19% by 2025. The report predicts that the entire region will have around 54 million operational 5G networks by 2025 which will represent a slightly lower adoption rate of 13%.  According to the study, between 2019 and 2025 Russian mobile operators will invest USD 39 billion in mobile infrastructure in order to facilitate the distribution of 5G throughout the entire CIS. That said, at present, the adoption of 4G in the region accounts for less than a quarter which is well below the average of 50% in Europe. Nevertheless, the study shows that 4G technology will take the lead in the region by 2021 and will represent 68% of connections by 2025.