移动通信网 程然
GSMA Intelligence最新发布的移动技术预测报告给出了6G商用的明确时间表和量化目标:全球6G连接数将在2035年达到24亿,占全球移动连接总数的23%。这一预测描绘了一条清晰的爬坡曲线——2030年底伴随首批商用网络启动,连接数约为5000万,仅占全球移动连接的0.5%;此后逐年加速,2031年底达2.75亿,2032年接近7.4亿,2033年跨越10亿大关并以13亿收官,2034年升至19亿。对于仍在标准制定阶段的6G而言,这份报告为产业界提供了可参照的规模化节奏标尺。
两阶段节奏:从生态搭建到全球规模运营
GSMA Intelligence认为,首个6G周期将由两个阶段构成。2030年至2032年是起步期,特征是初期商用启动与生态系统建设,网络覆盖、终端芯片、应用场景均处于磨合状态,用户规模有限但在稳定积累。从2033年开始,6G将进入全球规模运营阶段,这也解释了为何10亿连接的里程碑出现在这一年——技术从“可用”走向“普及”的拐点被设定在商用后第三年。
这一节奏与此前几代移动技术的扩散规律基本吻合。5G在2019年商用后同样经历了前三年生态培育、随后规模放量的过程。区别在于,6G起步时的全球产业成熟度更高,运营商建网经验和终端产业链协同能力均优于5G初期,这为2033年后的加速增长提供了基础。
【关键数据】
- 2035年全球6G连接数: 24亿
- 2030年底初始规模: 约5000万,占全球移动连接0.5%
- 2033年里程碑: 连接数突破10亿,年末达13亿
- 2035年技术结构: 6G占23%,5G仍占约60%
- 中国6G连接占比: 2035年超过全球总量的一半
共存而非替代:5G仍是2035年的主力底座
报告特别强调,6G的增长并非以牺牲5G为代价。到2035年底,5G仍将占全球移动连接的60%左右,规模远超6G的23%,4G也将在许多市场继续承担重要角色。GSMA Intelligence数据建模与预测负责人Matthew Iji明确表示,2035年应被视为6G的一个阶段性节点而非终点,“届时6G将 firmly 进入全球移动技术组合,但它将与规模大得多的5G基础共存,4G在许多市场仍发挥重要作用”。他进一步指出,这种多代技术共存将是6G早期时代的典型特征。
这一判断对运营商的网络投资策略有直接参考价值。在6G引入后的相当长时期内,5G网络仍需持续扩容和优化,双代际并行运营将成为常态。设备商和芯片厂商的产品路线图也需要同时覆盖两代技术,跨代际平滑演进能力的重要性进一步凸显。
中国角色:全球6G版图的半壁江山
在区域分布上,报告将中国列为影响全球6G数据的关键变量。GSMA Intelligence指出,鉴于中国市场体量,“不可避免地”会对全球6G连接数产生显著影响——到2035年,中国一国将占全球6G连接数的一半以上。不过中国并非孤例,报告预测到本世纪三十年代中期,全球多个领先移动市场都将有约一半的连接迁移至6G。从IMT-2030推进组的标准研究布局,到三大运营商的6G原型试验,中国产业链在标准冻结前的卡位动作,与这份预测形成相互印证。
对设备商和终端厂商而言,这份预测传递的核心信号是:6G不是脉冲式的替换需求,而是一条至少延续到2035年之后的长坡。随着3GPP R20标准的推进,围绕6G的频谱划分、芯片研发和场景验证将在未来两三年密集展开。真正的竞争,从现在已经开始。
出处:6G connections tipped to hit 2.4B in 2035
英文原文
GSMA Intelligence forecast global 6G connections would reach 2.4 billion in 2035, a steady rise from approximately 50 million after initial launches at the end of 2030. In its latest mobile technology forecast, the research arm of the GSMA tipped adoption of the technology to increase steadily, accounting for 0.5% of all global mobile connections by the end of 2030. It expects connections to hit 275 million by the end of 2031 and nearly 740 million in 2032. During 2033, 6G will reach the 1 billion connections milestone, ending the year at 1.3 billion before climbing to 1.9 billion in 2034 and 2.4 billion in 2035. GSMA Intelligence believes two phases will shape the first 6G cycle. From 2030 to 2032, its rollout will be characterised by initial launches and ecosystem development. From 2033 onwards, the technology will begin to operate at a global scale. The growth of 6G is not expected to come at the expense of 5G, with the latter still forecast to account for around 60% of global mobile connections by the end of 2035, compared with 23% for 6G. Milestone China “will inevitably have a significant influence” on the global 6G numbers given its scale, noted GSMA Intelligence, with the country set to account for more than half the connections by 2035. However, it will not be unique in reaching this level of adoption, with “several of the world’s leading mobile markets forecast to have around half of connections on 6G” by the middle of the decade. Matthew Iji, head of data modelling and forecasting at GSMA Intelligence, said the forecast for 2035 should be seen as a milestone, not the end point for 6G. “By 2035, 6G will have moved firmly into the global mobile technology mix, but it will coexist with a much larger 5G base and with 4G still playing an important role in many markets,” he said. “This coexistence is likely to be one of the defining characteristics of the early 6G era.” The post 6G connections tipped to hit 2.4B in 2035 appeared first on Mobile World Live .