Gitnux/Report 2026

Communication Technology Industry Statistics

The global connectivity industry generated $1.3 trillion in 2025, explore how 5G connections and operators’ data and automation efforts align across companies and trends.
313Statistics
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12Sections
1Visuals
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November 11, 2026Updated
Communication Technology Industry Statistics
Samuel NorbergWritten by Samuel Norberg·Fact-checked by Maya Johansson
Published ·Updated
How this report is researched
01Editorial Scope

Gitnux editors write the brief first: the topic, the inclusion rules, and the frame for what belongs.

02Source Research

Agents search the published record and log every extracted figure back to the passage it came from.

Read our full methodology →

Search agents attach provenance to every extracted figure.

Next review: within 31 days

01 Industry overview

The communication technology industry at a glance

Communication technology is a $1.3 trillion global connectivity industry, with 5G adoption accelerating and 6.3 billion people online in 2026.

$1.3T[64]
Global connectivity revenue, 2025
3.0B[64]
Global 5G connections, 2025
6.3B[22]
People online, 2026
90,161[91]
Telecom employees in Canada, 2025
Market size
Global connectivity revenue across mobile, fixed broadband and fixed voice reached $1.3 trillion in 2025, according to Omdia. Fixed broadband connections reached 1.6 billion in the same year.[64]
Forecast & CAGR
Global 5G connections are projected to reach 6.4 billion by 2031, compared with 2.7 billion at the end of 2025; this implies an approximate 15.5% compound annual growth rate over six years. Omdia reported that connectivity revenue grew 4% in 2025.[15][92][64]
Market share & regions
Asia accounted for 69% of global 5G connections in 2025. By the end of 2024, 5G represented more than half of mobile connections in North America, Greater China and developed Asia Pacific, while adoption remained lower across emerging markets.[64][23]
Segmentation
The connectivity market is divided principally into mobile, fixed broadband and fixed voice services. In 2025, mobile technologies included approximately 3.0 billion 5G connections and 8.3 billion 4G connections, while fixed broadband reached 1.6 billion connections and FTTx exceeded 1.169 billion.[64]
Key players & concentration
The global operator ranking by connectivity revenue is concentrated among US and Chinese companies: operators from the two countries held eight of the top ten positions in 2025, with the remaining two positions held by Japanese operators.[64]
Pricing
The median share of average monthly income required to buy a 5 GB mobile-broadband basket was 1.4% in 2025. Global average download speeds reached 92 Mbit/s for mobile broadband and 118 Mbit/s for fixed broadband in early 2025.[22]
Trends, drivers & challenges
5G, fibre, fixed wireless access, cloud connectivity and AI workloads are driving network investment. At the same time, operators face slow core-business growth, a 2% decline in global telecom capital expenditure to $303 billion in 2025, affordability gaps and uneven coverage across income groups.[64][23][22]
Consumer behavior & competition
An estimated 6.3 billion people, or 76% of the world’s population, were online in 2026, leaving about 2 billion people offline. Competition is shifting toward higher-speed fibre, 5G and fixed wireless services, with India overtaking the United States as the leading 5G fixed-wireless-access market in late 2025.[22][64]
M&A
AT&T completed its $5.75 billion acquisition of substantially all of Lumen Technologies’ mass-market fibre business in February 2026, adding more than 1 million fibre subscribers across more than 4 million fibre locations. The deal illustrates continued consolidation around fibre infrastructure and scale.[52]
Regulation
The European Union’s Gigabit Infrastructure Act became fully applicable on 12 May 2026, streamlining infrastructure sharing, civil works coordination and gigabit-network deployment. The European Commission also adopted the Digital Networks Act proposal on 21 January 2026 to replace several existing connectivity rules with a single framework.[93]
Latest news
The latest ITU estimate puts the global online population at 6.3 billion people, or 76% of the world’s population, in 2026. Current industry tracking also shows 5G connections surpassing 2.7 billion at the end of 2025 and continuing to expand toward 2030 and beyond.[22][92]

02 Ranking

Top 10 Companies in the Communication Technology Industry

The leading companies in the communication technology industry, ranked on market impact, performance, momentum, innovation and brand popularity.

Updated November 10, 2026 · Next review December 10, 2026

Verdict

Apple stands out for its consumer connectivity ecosystem because it reported $478.8 billion in fiscal 2026 net sales led by iPhone, while Cisco is the pick for enterprise communications infrastructure since it reported $56.7 billion in FY2025 revenue.

Ranked by Overall score · How we score ↓

Editor's top 3 picks

Where to start, by need.

  1. #1 Overall · Leader in consumer connectivity

    Apple

    US

    Ranked #1 · 9.4 · Consumer connectivity

    Why we picked it: Its communications ecosystem scale is reflected in $478.8 billion fiscal 2026 net sales, led by iPhone.

    See in ranking ↓Visit apple.com ↗

  2. Leader in enterprise networking

    Cisco

    US

    Ranked #2 · 9.3 · Enterprise networking

    Why we picked it: It reports FY2025 revenue of $56.7 billion and operates in enterprise networking, routing, and communications infrastructure.

    See in ranking ↓Visit cisco.com ↗

  3. Leader in operator network equipment

    ZTE

    CN

    Ranked #5 · 8.7 · Operator network equipment

    Why we picked it: Its operator-network exposure is reflected in RMB62.86 billion from Operator Network in 2025.

    See in ranking ↓Visit zte.com.cn ↗

Pick 1 is the #1 company overall. Picks 2 and 3 are the highest-ranked companies in the top 5 that add a new segment.

Full ranking

Sort by
Top 10 companies in the communication technology industry, 2026 – Gitnux ranking
#CompanyOverall ↓Company snapshot
1

Apple

Consumer connectivity · US

9.4
2

Cisco

Enterprise networking · US

9.3
3

Samsung Electronics

Mobile devices, semiconductors and network equipment · KR

9.2
4

Huawei

Telecom networks, ICT infrastructure and devices · CN

9.0
5

ZTE

Operator network equipment · CN

8.7
6

Deutsche Telekom

Mobile, fixed broadband and ICT services · DE

8.5
7

Nokia

Mobile, fixed, optical and IP network infrastructure · FI

8.5
8

Ciena

Optical networking, routing and communications platforms · US

8.4
9

Qualcomm

Wireless chipsets, connectivity platforms and licensing · US

8.3
10

Ericsson

Mobile networks, telecom software and connectivity infrastructure · SE

8.3

How we score

  • Impact (30%): scale and weight in the market (revenue, market share, employees, market position).
  • Performance (20%): recent revenue growth and operating margin; an analyst assessment where a company does not publish them.
  • Momentum (20%): growth trajectory and future potential.
  • Innovation (15%): R&D intensity and how technologically advanced the company is.

Popularity (brand search demand, 15%) counts toward Overall but is not published as a column. Overall leaves out what is not known.

Scale Scores are shown on a 7–10 scale with one decimal; bars start at 7.0.

Cadence Recalculated when new figures are published; next review December 10, 2026.

Independence. Rankings are editorially independent. Scores, ranks, picks and the verdict follow the method above; no company can pay to change them.

Cite this ranking

APA

Samuel Norberg. (2026, November 10). Top 10 companies in the communication technology industry. In Communication Technology Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/communication-technology-industry-statistics/#top-companies

report visual · Comparison

Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants (ITU regions and income groups)

CIS leads with 162 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants.

CIS162 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants
Europe127 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants
Americas117 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants
Asia-Pacific113 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants
Arab States107 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants
Africa101 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants
source-verifieditu.int

04 Statistics

Technology & Innovation

Telecom operators report expansion in AI and automation: 57% scaled AI use cases across multiple domains in 2025, and 73% cited modernising legacy systems as an AI focus in IT in 2025.

AI in the communication technology industry

  • $16 billion was the estimated potential new economic value from AI automation in the U.S. telecom sector by 2030.[1]
  • 57% of surveyed telecom companies reported scaling AI use cases across multiple domains in 2025.[1]
  • 51% of surveyed telecom executives viewed AI as a blockbuster technology capable of fully transforming the industry in 2025.[1]
  • 55% of telecom companies were exploring potential agentic-AI use cases globally in 2025.[2]
  • 73% of telecom respondents identified modernising legacy systems as a key focus for AI use in IT in 2025.[2]
  • Nearly 90% of telecom companies used AI in 2024, according to an NVIDIA industry survey.[3]

Automation in the communication technology industry

  • 20% of surveyed telecom organizations had already implemented network automation in 2024.[4]
  • 36% of telecom respondents prioritised proactive network testing to improve subscriber service levels in 2024.[4]
  • 20% was the reported improvement in operational efficiency from autonomous-network initiatives over the preceding two years.[5]
  • 84% of surveyed telecom operators were at autonomy Level 1 or Level 2 for their overall networks in 2024.[5]
  • 19% to 28% of surveyed telecom operators had automated each of the other listed transport-network use cases in 2026.[6]
  • 28% of surveyed telecom organizations were at least one year away from network-automation implementation in 2024.[4]

Digital Transformation in the software and IT services sector (sector benchmark)

  • 54.8% of surveyed organizations reported having a chief digital officer or another executive responsible for digital transformation.[7]
  • 45% of North American technology and business decision-makers planned to adopt AI and machine learning to improve business within 12 to 24 months.[8]
  • 34% of surveyed organizations globally identified replacing or upgrading legacy technology as a top digital-transformation goal in 2024.[8]
  • 75% of digital leaders globally planned to increase AI-related business expenditure in 2024.[8]
  • 72% of digital leaders globally expected to increase technology spending in 2024, compared with 50% of digital laggards, according to a survey of 855 technology and business decision-makers.[8]

Technology Adoption in the software and IT services sector (sector benchmark)

  • 57.7% of surveyed organizations reported having a chief information security officer or equivalent in 2024.[7]
  • More than 50% of surveyed global IT decision-makers were exploring AI use cases or piloting AI technologies in 2024.[8]
  • 51.8% of surveyed organizations reported that AI solutions were somewhat or extremely rare in 2024.[7]
  • 67.6% of IT services were delivered through cloud infrastructure among surveyed organizations in 2024.[7]

Cloud Computing in the software and IT services sector (sector benchmark)

  • 65.5% of EU enterprises using paid cloud services used them for security software applications in 2025.[9]
  • 71.5% of EU enterprises using paid cloud services used them for file storage in 2025.[9]
  • 85.2% of EU enterprises using paid cloud services used them for email in 2025.[9]
  • 52.7% of EU enterprises with at least 10 employees used paid cloud-computing services in 2025.[9]
  • 71.7% of EU enterprises using paid cloud services used them for office software in 2025.[9]
  • 26.1% of EU enterprises using paid cloud services used computing platforms for application development, testing or deployment in 2025.[9]

Big Data in the software and IT services sector (sector benchmark)

  • 14% of enterprises with at least 10 employees across the OECD used big-data analytics on average, based on 2022 data or the latest available year.[10]
  • 3% was the lowest reported enterprise adoption rate for big-data analytics across OECD countries in the latest available data through 2023.[10]
  • 40% was the highest reported enterprise adoption rate for big-data analytics across OECD countries in the latest available data through 2023.[10]

05 Statistics

Data & Analytics

Business intelligence in the communication technology industry

  • 58% of surveyed telecom operators had fully deployed one or two data platforms in 2025 worldwide.[11]
  • 48% of surveyed telecom operators were adopting traditional data-warehouse architecture in 2025 worldwide.[11]
  • 18 of 26 surveyed telecom operators planned to continue increasing data-platform investment over five years in 2025 worldwide.[11]
  • More than 60% of surveyed telecom operators planned to increase data-platform spending by 1%–10% over three years in 2025 worldwide.[11]
  • About 30% of surveyed telecom respondents were confident in their use of business-intelligence and analytics tools.[12]
  • More than 50% of surveyed telecom respondents had invested in business-intelligence and analytics platforms for data-driven marketing operations.[12]

Data analytics in the communication technology industry

  • $9.3 billion was the projected global telecom-analytics market size for 2026.[13]
  • 61.22% was mobile network operators’ share of the telecom-analytics market in 2025.[14]
  • 76.48% was large enterprises’ share of telecom-analytics-market revenue in 2025.[14]
  • 188 exabytes was global monthly mobile-network data traffic in the third quarter of 2025.[15]
  • 71.19% was software’s share of telecom-analytics market revenue in 2025.[14]
  • $8.09 billion was the estimated global telecom-analytics market size in 2025.[14]

Data Quality in the software and IT services sector (sector benchmark)

  • In 2025, 46% of organizations globally said they were fully confident in their data quality, across surveyed technology and business organizations.[16]
  • In 2025, 35% of organizations globally rated their data excellent for consistency and standardization, across surveyed technology and business organizations.[16]
  • In 2025, 43% of organizations globally rated their data excellent for quality and completeness, across surveyed technology and business organizations.[16]
  • In 2025, 34% of organizations globally rated their data excellent for relevance and suitability, across surveyed technology and business organizations.[16]
  • In 2025, 46% of organizations globally rated their data excellent for accuracy and integrity, across surveyed technology and business organizations.[16]
  • In 2024, 95% of enterprise data leaders and practitioners reported a data-quality issue with a direct impact on business outcomes, across companies with at least $1 billion in revenue.[17]

Data Governance in the software and IT services sector (sector benchmark)

  • In 2024, 32% of global technology leaders prioritized data governance among their data-management areas for the next 12 months.[18]
  • In 2024, 81.7% of organizations reported having no data-governance or catalog solution as part of their governance program, according to a global governance study.[19]
  • In 2024, 61% of supply-management organizations reported having a dedicated data-governance function, based on an Institute for Supply Management survey.[20]
  • In 2024, 18.3% of organizations reported having a data-governance or catalog solution as part of their governance program, according to a global governance study.[19]
  • In 2024, 35% of U.S. technology executives prioritized data governance among their data-management areas for the next 12 months.[18]
  • In 2026, 76% of global data leaders said their company’s AI governance did not completely keep pace with employee use of AI technology.[19]

KPIs in the communication technology industry

  • 1,765 million GB was Hexacom’s total network data volume in March 2025, compared with 1,430 million GB in March 2024 in India.[21]
  • 26,497 was Hexacom’s number of network towers in March 2025 in India.[21]
  • 27.7 GB was Hexacom’s data usage per customer per month in March 2025 in India.[21]
  • 21.565 million was Hexacom’s data-customer base in March 2025 in India.[21]
  • 1.9% was Hexacom’s monthly mobile-services churn rate in December 2024 in India.[21]
  • Rs242 was Hexacom’s mobile average revenue per user in March 2025 in India.[21]

06 Statistics

Strategy & Growth

Connectivity subscriptions and 5G adoption keep broadening. In 2025 estimates, there were 1.6 billion fixed-broadband subscriptions globally, and 5G represented 25% of global mobile connections in 2024.

Growth in the communication technology industry

  • 99 mobile-broadband subscriptions existed per 100 inhabitants worldwide in 2025.[22]
  • 1.6 billion fixed-broadband subscriptions were recorded globally in 2025 estimates.[22]
  • 25% of global mobile connections used 5G in 2024, excluding licensed cellular IoT connections.[23]
  • $1.3 trillion in mobile-operator capital expenditure is expected globally during 2024–2030.[23]
  • $1.25 trillion in mobile-operator revenue is forecast globally for 2030.[23]
  • 5.5 billion people are forecast to use mobile internet globally by 2030, representing 64% population penetration.[23]

Differentiation in the communication technology industry

  • More than half of the global population was covered by 5G networks in 2025.[22]
  • 1.1 billion consumers were represented by the 16-market Ericsson differentiated-connectivity survey in 2024.[15]
  • 17,000 active 5G users were included in Ericsson’s 2024 differentiated-connectivity survey.[15]
  • 5G connections represented 25% of global mobile connections in 2024.[23]
  • 79 service providers had commercially deployed 5G Standalone in Ericsson’s 2025 market assessment.[15]
  • 56 service providers had documented network-slicing use cases for differentiated connectivity in Ericsson’s 2025 assessment.[15]

Mergers and acquisitions in the communication technology industry

  • $4.4 billion including debt was the value reported for T-Mobile’s planned acquisition of substantially all U.S. Cellular operations in 2024.[24]
  • 119% was the year-over-year increase in global telecommunications M&A deal value in 2024.[25]
  • Nearly 10 million mobile subscribers were expected in the combined Datagroup-Volia and Lifecell businesses after their 2024 transactions in Ukraine.[26]
  • $16.6 billion was the announced value of Charter Communications’ acquisition of Liberty Broadband in 2024.[25]
  • $13.4 billion was the announced value of the Windstream–Uniti transaction in 2024.[25]
  • 62% of global telecommunications M&A deal value came from the Americas in 2024.[27]

Strategic partnerships in the communication technology industry

  • 2 companies—KDDI and DriveNets—signed a strategic partnership to accelerate open network architecture in 2025.[28]
  • 2 companies—Mavenir and e& UAE—announced a multi-year strategic technology partnership for converged 5G packet core networks in 2025.[29]
  • 180 countries will be covered by the international connectivity platform announced by BT and Verizon in 2026.[30]
  • 2 companies—Verizon and AST SpaceMobile—expanded their strategic partnership for space-based cellular service in 2025.[24]
  • 3 companies—du, AWS and Nokia—formed the strategic collaboration announced to cloudify du’s RAN in the United Arab Emirates in 2025.[31]
  • 23,000 consumers were surveyed in Ericsson’s 2024 study of differentiated mobile-service opportunities for communications providers and partners.[15]

07 Statistics

People & Workforce

Workforce planning shows continued hybrid and training investment. In 2026, 34.8% of global software and IT services respondents worked remotely, and Ericsson recorded 25.1 hours of training per employee in 2024.

Hiring in the communication technology industry

  • 37% of Vodafone’s external hires were women in fiscal 2025.[32]
  • 28% of Vodafone employees were women in external hiring in 2024.[33]
  • More than 4,100 net jobs had been created by iliad in France since 2020.[34]
  • 55% of telecommunications employers reported freezing hiring because of financial pressures in the 2023 EY Work Reimagined Survey.[35]
  • 210 women were among SK Telecom’s 379 new employees in South Korea in 2024.[36]

Employee retention in the communication technology industry

  • 11.0% to 15.3% was the middle-half employee-turnover range among 22 telecommunication-services companies in fiscal 2025.[37]
  • 95.5% of Deutsche Telekom employees were covered by a health-and-safety management system in 2024.[38]
  • 6.8 years was the average tenure of T-Mobile US permanent employees in 2023.[39]
  • 88% of Ericsson employees received performance and career-development reviews in 2024.[15]
  • 6.4% was global technology-sector turnover in 2023 in Mercer’s data.[40]

Remote Work in the software and IT services sector (sector benchmark)

  • 6% of global respondents worked fully remotely in 2025, defined as spending less than one day per week in the office.[41]
  • 48% of U.S. software and IT professionals surveyed worked remotely in 2026, compared with 21% in France.[42]
  • 84% of technology-services employers agreed in 2025 that the ability to work remotely is important for employee retention.[41]
  • 10% of technology-services respondents worked under fully flexible arrangements in 2025, allowing employees substantial control over remote work.[41]
  • 34.8% of global software and IT services respondents worked remotely in 2026, according to the Stack Overflow Developer Survey.[42]

Hybrid Work in the software and IT services sector (sector benchmark)

  • 61% of U.S. employees with remote-capable jobs preferred hybrid work in November 2025, compared with 33% preferring fully remote work.[43]
  • 52% of U.S. employees with remote-capable jobs worked in hybrid arrangements in May 2026, according to Gallup.[43]
  • 56% of IT employees worked in hybrid arrangements in 2025, while 31% were fully remote and 13% attended the office daily.[44]
  • 47% of global respondents worked in hybrid arrangements in 2025, down from 63% in Cisco’s 2022 study.[41]
  • 55% of technology-services respondents worked in a hybrid arrangement in 2025, the highest share among industries measured by Cisco.[41]

Upskilling in the communication technology industry

  • 10% of telco employees were expected to receive AI and generative-AI upskilling during 2024 in the TeBIT study.[45]
  • 82% of Telefónica employees invested in learning and developing new skills in 2024.[46]
  • 25.1 hours was Ericsson’s average recorded training time per employee in 2024.[15]
  • 8.0 million hours were spent on employee training by AT&T in 2024.[47]
  • 45 hours was Nokia’s average training time per employee in 2024.[33]

Employee Engagement in the software and IT services sector (sector benchmark)

  • 74% of respondents approved of fully flexible hybrid policies in 2025, the highest positive sentiment among the policy types Cisco measured.[41]
  • 22.2% of global software and IT respondents were happy with their current professional role in 2026, while 32.6% were unhappy.[42]
  • 37% of exclusively remote U.S. employees were engaged in May 2026, compared with 34% of hybrid employees and 29% of on-site employees with remote-capable jobs.[43]
  • 92% of employees ranked collaboration and community as very important aspects of office culture in Cisco’s 2025 global study.[41]
  • 54% of exclusively remote U.S. employees were thriving in May 2026, compared with 52% of hybrid employees and 49% of on-site employees with remote-capable jobs.[43]

08 Statistics

Customer & Sales

Lead handling and retention metrics stay central. In the 2026 benchmark dataset, 51% of calls to telecom providers reached a person, and Verizon Consumer wireless retail postpaid ARPA was $139.77 in Q4 2024.

Customer experience in the communication technology industry

  • 0.89% was Verizon Consumer wireless retail postpaid phone churn in the United States in the fourth quarter of 2024.[48]
  • 68% of mobile-provider customers globally reported trust in 2025.[49]
  • $139.77 was Verizon Consumer wireless retail postpaid ARPA in the United States in the fourth quarter of 2024.[48]
  • 15.0% was Verizon's year-over-year increase in total broadband connections in the United States in the fourth quarter of 2024.[48]
  • 1.12% was Verizon Consumer wireless retail postpaid churn in the United States in the fourth quarter of 2024.[48]

Customer retention in the communication technology industry

  • 2.73% was T-Mobile US prepaid churn in 2024.[50]
  • 1.58% was Lumen consumer broadband churn in the United States in 2024.[51]
  • 2.22% was Lumen consumer copper broadband churn in the United States in 2024.[51]
  • 0.84% was Verizon wireless retail postpaid phone churn in the United States in 2024.[48]
  • 0.92% was AT&T postpaid churn in the United States in 2024.[52]

Customer acquisition in the communication technology industry

  • 110,000 was Verizon wireline broadband net additions in the United States in 2024.[48]
  • 2.020 million was AT&T reseller net subscriber additions in the United States in 2024.[52]
  • 341,000 was Verizon wireless retail postpaid phone net additions in the United States in 2024.[48]
  • 2.250 million was AT&T postpaid net subscriber additions in the United States in 2024.[52]
  • 1.345 million was Verizon wireless retail postpaid net additions in the United States in 2024.[48]

Customer loyalty in the communication technology industry

  • 68% of mobile-provider customers globally reported trust in 2024.[49]
  • 0.86% was T-Mobile US postpaid phone churn in 2024, its reported measure of customer retention and loyalty.[50]
  • 0.99% was TELUS postpaid mobile churn in Canada in 2024, maintained below 1% for the eleventh consecutive year.[53]
  • 68% of mobile-provider customers globally reported trust in their provider in 2025.[49]
  • 42% of telecom customers surveyed had high loyalty and had stayed with their provider for more than six years in 2024.[54]

Lead generation in the communication technology industry

  • 30% of ChatGPT-referred telecom leads converted on the call in the 2026 benchmark dataset.[55]
  • 51% of calls to telecom providers reached a person in the 2026 benchmark dataset.[55]
  • 44% of ChatGPT-referred telecom calls were leads in the 2026 benchmark dataset.[55]
  • 35% of telecom leads converted during the call in the 2026 benchmark dataset.[55]
  • 32% of paid-search telecom calls were leads in the 2026 benchmark dataset.[55]

09 Statistics

Marketing & Brand

Marketing in the communication technology industry

  • 188,000 mobile, technology and telecommunications professionals subscribed to Mobile World Live Daily in 2024.[23]
  • $525 million was Vodafone Idea’s marketing expense in 2024, down from $536 million in 2023, in India.[56]
  • 4 marketing-related awards were received by Telefónica at Spain’s 2024 National Marketing Awards, including Best Marketing Team and Best Marketing Director.[46]
  • 10 million or more page views were generated by the MWC Barcelona 2024 event campaign on mwcbarcelona.com.[23]
  • 5.5 million page views were recorded by Mobile World Live in 2024, supporting marketing and content distribution for the global mobile industry.[23]

Digital marketing in the communication technology industry

  • 840,000 or more organic-search visits were generated by the MWC Barcelona 2025 campaign.[57]
  • 78 million or more paid-social campaign impressions were delivered by MWC Barcelona in 2025.[57]
  • 50.3% was the average email open rate for MWC Barcelona’s 2025 campaign.[57]
  • 3.4 million or more emails were sent during MWC Barcelona’s 2025 digital campaign.[57]
  • 69% of MWC Barcelona’s LinkedIn advertisements directed users to senior-level executives in 2025.[57]

Branding in the communication technology industry

  • $105.7 billion was Deutsche Telekom’s telecommunications brand value in Kantar BrandZ’s 2025 ranking.[38]
  • $72.3 billion was Verizon’s global telecom brand value in 2025, ranking it second worldwide.[58]
  • $53.9 billion was AT&T’s brand value in the 2026 global telecommunications brand comparison.[59]
  • 16% was the year-on-year increase in Deutsche Telekom’s brand value to $85.3 billion in 2025.[58]
  • €76.5 billion was Deutsche Telekom’s brand value in Brand Finance Europe 500 for 2025.[38]

Social media in the communication technology industry

  • 280 million people in North America used mobile devices for social media in 2023.[23]
  • 82% of North American mobile users used mobile devices for social media in 2023.[23]
  • 2.5 million visits were recorded across MWC Barcelona’s web and social-media activity in 2025.[57]
  • 22,000 new social-media followers were gained by MWC Barcelona during its 2025 event campaign.[57]
  • 138,000 or more media and social-media mentions were recorded at MWC Barcelona in 2022.[60]

Influencer Marketing in the software and IT services sector (sector benchmark)

  • Across technology companies, 64% of marketers reported dedicated and growing budgets for creator or influencer marketing in 2026, according to Nielsen’s global marketing survey.[61]
  • Across B2B companies, 43% of marketers reported outstanding results from their influencer programs in the 2025 B2B Influencer Marketing Report.[62]
  • Across technology companies, 27% of marketers reported dedicated but flat budgets for creator or influencer marketing in 2026, according to Nielsen’s global marketing survey.[61]
  • Across B2B companies, another 29% of marketing organizations planned to adopt influencer marketing within the next year in 2025, based on an Ipsos survey of 1,500 marketing leaders.[63]
  • Across B2B companies, 55% of marketing organizations were using influencers in 2025, based on an Ipsos survey of 1,500 marketing leaders.[63]

10 Statistics

Operations & Execution

Operators focus on operational assurance and automation. In 2024, 36% of telecommunications respondents prioritized proactive network testing, and open networks savings were reported by Openreach at £35 million from AI-powered automation in fiscal 2024.

Process optimization in the communication technology industry

  • 60% of respondents expected AI-enabled predictive automation across all network domains within two years in 2024.[6]
  • 36% of telecommunications respondents prioritized proactive network testing to stay ahead of outages.[4]
  • 67% of surveyed IT teams had begun adopting AI capabilities to simplify network operations, automate complex tasks, and accelerate remediation in 2024.[6]
  • 65% of telecommunications respondents identified lack of interoperability between multiple endpoints as a key network-automation challenge.[4]
  • 39% of telecommunications respondents said network health checks should be prioritized to accelerate innovation.[4]

Operational efficiency in the communication technology industry

  • Adjusted global telecommunications operating expenditure decreased 0.1% to $1.31 trillion in 2024.[64]
  • Global telecommunications operating expenditure fell 0.2% to $1.63 trillion in 2024.[64]
  • Global telecommunications revenue increased 3.4% to $2.01 trillion in 2024.[64]
  • NOS telecommunications-service energy consumption was 25.29 kWh per terabyte in 2024.[65]
  • Openreach reported £35 million in annual savings from AI-powered automation in fiscal 2024.[64]

Quality management in the communication technology industry

  • 58% of U.S. wireless customers strongly agreed that their carrier was reliable for phone calls in 2024.[66]
  • 47% of U.S. wireless customers strongly agreed that their carrier was reliable for mobile websites in 2024.[66]
  • 47% of U.S. wireless customers strongly agreed that their carrier was reliable for streaming audio in 2024.[66]
  • 49% of U.S. wireless customers strongly agreed that their carrier was reliable for mobile-app use in 2024.[66]
  • 46% of U.S. wireless customers strongly agreed that their carrier was reliable for playing games in 2024.[66]

Supply chain in the communication technology industry

  • Two of Telefónica’s seven major network-infrastructure suppliers were located in China in 2024.[46]
  • Worldwide semiconductor test-equipment billings increased 20% in 2024.[67]
  • Worldwide semiconductor assembly-and-packaging-equipment sales increased 25% in 2024.[67]
  • Global semiconductor-manufacturing-equipment sales increased 10% to $117.1 billion in 2024.[67]
  • Worldwide wafer-processing-equipment sales increased 9% in 2024.[67]

Outsourcing / Offshoring in the software and IT services sector (sector benchmark)

  • Across EU enterprises sourcing business functions internationally during 2021–2023, 28.7% moved information and communication technology services abroad.[9]
  • Among German IT-service generalists, 10.2% of digital-experience services for customer projects were delivered offshore in 2024.[68]
  • Across German digital-experience service providers, 13.2% of services for customer projects were delivered nearshore in 2024.[68]
  • Across German digital-experience service providers, 7.6% of services for customer projects were delivered offshore in 2024.[68]
  • Across European organizations, 35% planned to increase their use of nearshore outsourcing in the 2024/2025 sourcing study.[69]

11 Statistics

Finance & Pricing

Pricing pressure coexists with spending discipline. Global connectivity affordability showed a median 1.4% share of average monthly income for a 5 GB mobile-broadband basket in 2025, while telecom opex was approximately $1.31 trillion in 2024.

Pricing strategy in the communication technology industry

  • 28% of global mobile customers were considering switching providers in the 2025 telecommunications study, with weak price-value perception among the main triggers.[54]
  • $33.56 was the U.S. mobile wireless industry’s average revenue per user in 2023, down approximately 6% from $35.74 in 2021.[70]
  • $34.14 was T-Mobile’s U.S. prepaid ARPU in 2025, down 5% year over year because of customer mix and promotional activity.[50]
  • $19.81 was global fixed-broadband ARPU in 2024, up from $19.73 in 2023, according to PwC’s global telecommunications outlook.[71]
  • $1.32 trillion was PwC’s projection for global telecommunications service revenue in 2029, up from $1.15 trillion in 2024.[71]

Cost reduction in the communication technology industry

  • 0.1% was the decline in global adjusted telecommunications opex in 2024, to approximately $1.31 trillion excluding depreciation and one-off items.[64]
  • 5% was UScellular’s 2024 reduction in capital expenditures, to $554 million in the United States.[56]
  • 8% was UScellular’s 2024 reduction in cost of equipment sold, to $906 million in the United States.[56]
  • 3% was UScellular’s 2024 reduction in selling, general and administrative expense, to $1.298 billion in the United States.[56]
  • 0.2% was the decline in global telecommunications operating expenditure in 2024, bringing total opex to approximately $1.63 trillion.[64]

Profitability in the communication technology industry

  • 8.5% was Deutsche Telekom’s 2024 return on capital employed globally, down from 9.0% in 2023.[38]
  • TL8.5 billion was Türk Telekom’s 2024 net profit in Türkiye, down from TL23.7 billion in 2023.[72]
  • 39% was Türk Telekom’s 2024 EBITDA margin in Türkiye, up from approximately 33.5% in 2023.[72]
  • 36.0% was Inseego’s 2024 gross profit margin for communication technology products and services in the United States.[73]
  • 39.5% was AT&T’s 2024 Communications segment EBITDA margin in the United States, up from 38.3% in 2023.[52]

Financial planning in the communication technology industry

  • $17.1 billion was Verizon’s 2024 capital expenditure in the United States.[48]
  • $554 million was UScellular’s 2024 capital expenditure in the United States, down from $580 million in 2023.[56]
  • €96.5 billion was Deutsche Telekom’s 2024 service revenue globally, compared with €92.9 billion in 2023.[38]
  • €16.0 billion was Deutsche Telekom’s 2024 cash capex before spectrum investment globally.[38]
  • €115.8 billion was Deutsche Telekom’s 2024 revenue globally, compared with €112.0 billion in 2023.[38]

12 Statistics

Product & Service

Product performance and operational outcomes are tracked through device and customer measures. In 2024, 96% of the global population lived within mobile internet coverage, and 40% of 5G users consumed paid video, music, or gaming content weekly.

Product development in the communication technology industry

  • 19,961 Huaqin Technology employees worked in R&D in 2025, equal to 28.50% of its workforce.[74]
  • 60,000-plus granted patents formed Ericsson’s worldwide patent portfolio by 2025.[15]
  • 139 invention patents were granted to Huaqin Technology during 2025.[74]
  • 114,000 Huawei employees worked in R&D in 2025, representing 53.7% of its global workforce.[75]
  • 6,376.9 million yuan was Huaqin Technology’s R&D investment in 2025.[74]

Product lifecycle in the communication technology industry

  • 96 billion kilograms of electrical and electronic equipment were placed on the global market in 2022.[22]
  • 13.8 billion kilograms of e-waste were formally collected and recycled worldwide in 2022.[22]
  • 17.6 kilograms per person was Europe’s e-waste generation in 2022, the highest regional level reported.[22]
  • 62 billion kilograms of e-waste were generated worldwide in 2022, reflecting the end-of-life burden of electronic and communication products.[22]
  • 120 billion kilograms of electrical and electronic equipment are projected to be placed on the market in 2030.[22]

After-sales in the communication technology industry

  • 0.269% was Huaqin Technology’s customer complaint rate in 2025.[74]
  • 0.84% was average U.S. postpaid phone churn in the third quarter of 2024 across AT&T, T-Mobile US and Verizon.[23]
  • 97.27% was Farasis Energy’s customer complaint closure rate in 2025.[76]
  • More than 90% of Vodafone’s population footprint had 5G standalone coverage in 2025.[32]
  • 94 points was Farasis Energy’s customer-satisfaction score in 2025.[76]

Value proposition in the communication technology industry

  • 82% of 5G users across the surveyed countries said 5G met or exceeded their expectations in 2024.[23]
  • 5.8% of global GDP was generated by mobile technologies and services in 2024.[23]
  • 96% of the global population lived within mobile internet coverage in 2024.[23]
  • 40% of 5G users consumed paid video, music or gaming content weekly in 2024, compared with 24% of 4G users.[23]
  • 6.5 trillion US dollars was the global economic value added by mobile technologies and services in 2024.[23]

13 Statistics

Sustainability & Ethics

Sustainability reporting covers materials and energy. Verizon recycled or reused 92 million pounds of materials in 2024, and Ericsson reported 98% of product take-back material recycled or reused in 2024.

Sustainability in the communication technology industry

  • 92 million pounds of materials were recycled or reused by Verizon in 2024, United States.[48]
  • 11.3 million devices were processed for reuse, resale or recycling by T-Mobile in 2024, United States.[39]
  • 77.1 million customers used Vodafone financial-inclusion services in 2025, globally.[32]
  • 98% of Ericsson product take-back material was recycled or reused in 2024, globally.[15]
  • 97.5% of T-Mobile’s energy supply came from renewable energy in 2024, United States.[39]

ESG in the communication technology industry

  • Nearly all participating mobile operators reported having a sustainable-procurement policy in 2024, globally.[23]
  • 24 mobile operators participated in GSMA’s ESG benchmarking study in 2024, representing nearly one-third of global mobile connections.[23]
  • 23 of 24 participating mobile operators disclosed Scope 3 emissions in 2024, globally.[23]
  • 100% of participating operator groups had online-safety controls or programmes for children and vulnerable people in 2024, globally.[23]
  • All 24 participating mobile operators disclosed Scope 1 and 2 emissions in 2024, globally.[23]

Ethics in the communication technology industry

  • 67% of surveyed consumers reviewed or updated privacy settings during the prior year in 2024, across 12 countries.[41]
  • 99.9% of AT&T employees completed Code of Business Conduct training in 2024, globally excluding AT&T Mexico.[47]
  • 63% of surveyed consumers said AI can improve their lives in 2024, across 12 countries.[6]
  • 77% of surveyed consumers supported consistent privacy rules across countries and regions in 2024, across 12 countries.[6]
  • 68% of surveyed consumers used multifactor authentication when possible in 2024, across 12 countries.[6]

CSR in the communication technology industry

  • 97% of Vodafone’s Turkish population had 4G outdoor coverage in 2025, Türkiye.[32]
  • 34 million people benefited from Deutsche Telekom’s digital-society programmes in 2024, globally.[77]
  • More than 6.3 million students were connected through T-Mobile US education initiatives in 2024, United States.[77]
  • €1.1 billion was Deutsche Telekom’s community contribution to digital society in 2024, globally.[77]
  • 22.7% was Deutsche Telekom’s share of digital experts in 2024, globally.[77]

Circular economy in the communication technology industry

  • 4.6 billion kilograms of small IT and telecommunications e-waste were generated in 2022, globally.[22]
  • 13.8 billion kilograms of e-waste were formally collected and recycled in 2022, globally.[22]
  • 100% of Vodafone network equipment e-waste was reused, resold or sent for recycling in 2025, globally.[78]
  • 22.3% was the global formally documented e-waste collection and recycling rate in 2022, globally.[22]
  • 92 million pounds of Verizon materials were recycled or reused in 2024, United States.[48]

Carbon footprint in the communication technology industry

  • 3,596,917 metric tonnes of location-based Scope 2 emissions were reported by Verizon in 2024, United States.[48]
  • 0.28 million tonnes of market-based Scope 1 and 2 emissions were reported by Vodafone in 2025, globally.[32]
  • 0.2% of global greenhouse-gas emissions came from mobile operators’ operational emissions in 2024, globally.[79]
  • 2.34 million tonnes of location-based Scope 1 and 2 emissions were reported by Vodafone in 2025, globally.[32]
  • 7.09 million tonnes of Scope 3 emissions were reported by Vodafone in 2025, globally.[32]

15 Statistics

Globalization & Expansion

Coverage and device access extend globally. In 2026, the online population reached 6.3 billion people, or 76% of the world’s population, according to the latest ITU estimate.

Globalization in the communication technology industry

  • 4.4 billion people, or 54% of the world’s population, used their own smartphone to access mobile internet at the end of 2024.[23]
  • 4.7 billion people, representing 58% of the world’s population, used mobile internet on their own device at the end of 2024.[23]
  • $1.3 trillion in global connectivity revenue was generated in 2025, up 4% year on year.[64]
  • Mobile technologies and services contributed $240 billion to Africa’s economy in 2025.[23]
  • 1.6 billion fixed-broadband connections existed globally in 2025.[64]

Cultural adaptation in the communication technology industry

  • Only three of the ten most common mobile-app languages in 2024 were non-European languages: Japanese, Indonesian and Mandarin.[23]
  • Sub-Saharan Africa scored 34.75 on the GSMA Mobile Connectivity Index local-relevance measure in 2024.[23]
  • Approximately 15% of active mobile apps were available in Spanish in 2024, making it the second-most common app language.[23]
  • 34% of mobile internet subscribers in Latin America and the Caribbean still used a 3G smartphone or feature phone in 2024.[23]
  • South Asia scored 49.2 on the GSMA Mobile Connectivity Index local-relevance measure in 2024.[23]

Supplier management in the communication technology industry

  • Vodafone spent approximately €24 billion annually with more than 9,000 direct suppliers worldwide in 2024.[78]
  • FET Telecom’s top 100 suppliers accounted for 92.3% of its annual procurement amount in 2024.[88]
  • FET Telecom identified 38 key tier-two suppliers through its 2024 supplier survey.[88]
  • Bharti Airtel’s Indian suppliers represented 97% of procurement spend in fiscal 2023–24.[89]
  • FET Telecom engaged 1,076 suppliers in 2024.[88]

Stakeholder management in the communication technology industry

  • Vodafone’s involuntary employee turnover rate was 3% in 2024.[32]
  • 88% of Vodafone employees reported alignment to the company’s purpose in 2024.[32]
  • Vodafone employed an average of 85,887 people in 2024.[32]
  • Vodafone issued 22,253 peer-to-peer recognition awards in 2024.[32]
  • Vodafone issued 58,951 cash recognition awards through its digital recognition tool in 2024.[32]

Distribution channels in the communication technology industry

  • 26.3% of surveyed telecom customers preferred websites for reporting a service fault in 2025.[90]
  • 30.0% of surveyed telecom customers preferred using voice telephone support to sign or renew a broadband contract in 2025.[90]
  • More than 160,000 points of sale, including supermarkets, newsstands and small retailers, distributed prepaid phone services for TIM customers in Brazil in 2024.[56]
  • 39.1% of surveyed telecom customers preferred using a website to add a new service in 2025.[90]
  • 54.4% of surveyed telecom customers preferred websites for checking their bills in 2025.[90]

Key questions about the communication technology industry

What is the size of the global connectivity industry in 2025?
Global connectivity revenue reached $1.3 trillion in 2025 across mobile, fixed broadband, and fixed voice.
How fast is 5G expanding from 2025 toward 2031?
Global 5G connections are projected to reach 6.4 billion by 2031 versus 2.7 billion at the end of 2025, implying an approximate 15.5% compound annual growth rate over six years.
Which companies lead the communication technology industry?
Apple stands out for its consumer connectivity ecosystem because it reported $478.8 billion in fiscal 2026 net sales led by iPhone, while Cisco is the pick for enterprise communications infrastructure since it reported $56.7 billion in FY2025 revenue.
Which technology shifts are driving network investment?
5G, fibre, fixed wireless access, cloud connectivity, and AI workloads are driving network investment, while legacy mobile networks continue retiring.
How concentrated is the operator market by connectivity revenue and where is it based?
Connectivity revenue concentration is among US and Chinese companies, with operators from these two countries holding eight of the top ten positions in 2025.
What is the baseline telecom spend trend reflected in the latest data?
Global telecom capital expenditure declined 2% in 2025 to $303 billion, reflecting disciplined capital spending.
Reference

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Samuel Norberg. (2026, November 10). Communication Technology Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/communication-technology-industry-statistics
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Samuel Norberg. "Communication Technology Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 10 Nov 2026, https://gitnux.org/communication-technology-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Samuel Norberg. 2026. "Communication Technology Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/communication-technology-industry-statistics.

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