With more mobile connections than people on Earth, the way we communicate is being rewritten by staggering numbers that reveal our world's insatiable appetite for connectivity.
Key Takeaways
- In 2023, the global number of mobile cellular subscriptions reached 8.58 billion, equivalent to 108 percent of the world's population
- As of 2024, there were 5.64 billion unique mobile internet users worldwide, representing 68.7% penetration rate
- In Q4 2023, global smartphone shipments totaled 403.5 million units, a 5.6% year-over-year increase
- Worldwide fixed broadband subscriptions reached 1.52 billion in 2023, representing 19 per 100 people
- Global home internet penetration was 65% in households by 2023
- In 2023, average fixed broadband speed globally was 91 Mbps download
- Global social media users numbered 5.24 billion in early 2024, 60.1% of population
- Facebook had 3.07 billion monthly active users in Q4 2023
- YouTube reached 2.5 billion monthly users in 2023
- Global TV households numbered 1.1 billion in 2023
- Worldwide radio listeners averaged 2.5 hours daily in 2023
- US newspaper circulation fell to 20.9 million daily in 2023
- Global submarine cable length totaled 1.4 million km in 2023
- Worldwide data center capacity reached 10,000 MW in 2023
- Global telecom capex was $295 billion in 2023
Mobile connectivity continues to grow globally in both usage and infrastructure.
Communication Infrastructure
- Global submarine cable length totaled 1.4 million km in 2023
- Worldwide data center capacity reached 10,000 MW in 2023
- Global telecom capex was $295 billion in 2023
- Number of internet exchange points (IXPs) hit 580 globally in 2023
- US telecom infrastructure investment $80 billion annually avg 2023
- Global undersea cable systems numbered 550 in 2023
- Europe's 5G base stations totaled 250,000 by end-2023
- China laid 1.2 million km of fiber optic cable in 2023
- Global tower companies managed 2.8 million sites in 2023
- India's telecom capex reached $15 billion in FY2023
- Worldwide spectrum auctions raised $50 billion since 2010 to 2023
- Africa mobile tower count 200,000 in 2023
- Global CDNs handled 80% of internet traffic in 2023
- Brazil invested $10 billion in telecom infra 2023
- Number of satellites in low Earth orbit exceeded 6,000 in 2023
- Global dark fiber length 20 million km in 2023
- Australia's NBN network passed 12 million premises in 2023
- Middle East telecom revenue $60 billion in 2023
- Global IP backbone capacity grew 30% to 2,500 Tbps in 2023
- Japan had 99.9% fiber coverage in 2023
- Worldwide microwave backhaul links 1.5 million in 2023
- South Korea 5G sites over 80,000 in 2023
- Global edge computing nodes reached 500,000 in 2023
Communication Infrastructure Interpretation
The planet has quite literally wired itself with a nervous system of staggering scale and cost—from the ocean floor to low Earth orbit—just so you could complain about the Wi-Fi during your video call.
Internet and Broadband
- Worldwide fixed broadband subscriptions reached 1.52 billion in 2023, representing 19 per 100 people
- Global home internet penetration was 65% in households by 2023
- In 2023, average fixed broadband speed globally was 91 Mbps download
- By end-2023, fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) connections totaled 650 million worldwide
- US fixed broadband subscribers numbered 123 million in 2023
- Global internet traffic grew 10% year-over-year to 5,200 EB in 2023
- In China, fixed broadband users reached 600 million in 2023
- Europe had 280 million fixed broadband subscriptions in 2023
- Global median fixed broadband download speed hit 100 Mbps in H2 2023
- India's fixed broadband subscribers grew to 35 million in 2023
- By 2023, 50% of global fixed broadband was fibre optic
- Brazil's fixed broadband access reached 40 million households in 2023
- Average global fixed internet latency was 25 ms in 2023
- Japan led with 350 Mbps average fixed broadband speed in 2023
- Africa had only 25 million fixed broadband subscriptions in 2023
- Global cable broadband subscribers totaled 280 million in 2023
- South Korea's fixed broadband penetration was 98% of households in 2023
- In 2023, global Wi-Fi 6 deployments covered 40% of hotspots
- Germany's fixed broadband lines numbered 34 million in 2023
- Worldwide DSL subscriptions declined to 400 million in 2023
- Australia's NBN fixed broadband connections hit 8.5 million in 2023
- Global satellite broadband users grew to 5 million in 2023
- Fixed broadband ARPU averaged $25 monthly worldwide in 2023
- In France, 90% household fixed broadband coverage in 2023
- Global IP traffic from fixed networks was 3,500 EB in 2023
- Canada's fixed broadband subscribers reached 15 million in 2023
- In 2023, 4.9 billion people used the internet, 59.5% of global population
Internet and Broadband Interpretation
While the world's fixed broadband weaves a faster fibre-rich network serving 1.52 billion subscriptions, the digital divide gapes with Africa's mere 25 million against South Korea's 98% household penetration, even as 4.9 billion people online drive traffic up 10% to 5,200 exabytes.
Mobile Communications
- In 2023, the global number of mobile cellular subscriptions reached 8.58 billion, equivalent to 108 percent of the world's population
- As of 2024, there were 5.64 billion unique mobile internet users worldwide, representing 68.7% penetration rate
- In Q4 2023, global smartphone shipments totaled 403.5 million units, a 5.6% year-over-year increase
- By 2025, the number of 5G connections worldwide is projected to reach 1.76 billion
- In 2022, mobile network data traffic grew by 25% to 771 exabytes globally
- India had 1.17 billion mobile subscribers in 2023, with a penetration rate of 81.4%
- In the US, mobile penetration stood at 128% in 2023 with 345 million subscriptions
- Global mobile voice traffic in 2023 was estimated at 12.5 trillion minutes
- 4G connections accounted for 60% of global mobile connections in 2023
- In Africa, mobile money transactions reached $912 billion in value in 2023
- China's mobile subscribers numbered 1.65 billion in 2023
- Average global mobile data usage per smartphone user was 13.1 GB per month in 2023
- In 2023, 55% of global mobile connections were broadband
- Brazil had 260 million mobile lines in 2023, penetration 122%
- Global SMS traffic in 2023 exceeded 2.3 trillion messages
- 5G standalone networks covered 320 million people globally by end-2023
- In Europe, mobile subscriptions totaled 750 million in 2023
- Average mobile ARPU worldwide was $4.50 per month in 2023
- Nigeria's mobile penetration hit 113% with 237 million subscriptions in 2023
- Global mobile app downloads reached 257 billion in 2023
- In Japan, 99% mobile penetration with 156 million subscriptions in 2023
- M2M/IoT mobile connections grew to 2.1 billion globally in 2023
- South Korea had 76 million mobile broadband subscriptions in 2023
- Global mobile financial services users numbered 1.5 billion in 2023
- In 2023, 45% of mobile traffic was video
- Indonesia's mobile subscribers reached 312 million in 2023
- Average 5G data usage was 330 GB per year per user in 2023
- Global mobile operators' revenue hit $1.07 trillion in 2023
- Philippines had 171 million mobile connections in 2023, penetration 150%
- In 2023, global VoLTE subscriptions surpassed 5 billion
Mobile Communications Interpretation
We are more multiply subscribed than alive, drowning in data yet still starving for a signal that truly connects us.
Social Media
- Global social media users numbered 5.24 billion in early 2024, 60.1% of population
- Facebook had 3.07 billion monthly active users in Q4 2023
- YouTube reached 2.5 billion monthly users in 2023
- WhatsApp had 2 billion users worldwide in 2023
- Instagram's monthly active users hit 2 billion in 2023
- TikTok surpassed 1.5 billion users in 2023
- Global time spent on social media averaged 2 hours 25 minutes daily in 2024
- In the US, 83% of adults use YouTube, 70% Facebook in 2023
- Twitter (X) had 556 million monthly users in 2023
- LinkedIn reached 1 billion members in 2023
- Snapchat had 414 million daily active users in Q4 2023
- Global social media ad spend reached $207 billion in 2023
- India had 462 million social media users in 2024
- 58% of global social media users are female in 2024
- Daily social media posts exceed 500 million on Facebook alone in 2023
- WeChat had 1.34 billion monthly users in China 2023
- Global influencers numbered 50 million on Instagram in 2023
- Pinterest reached 498 million monthly users in 2023
- Social media drove 31% of referral traffic to websites in 2023
- Brazil had 144 million social media users in 2024
- 95% of 18-24 year olds use social media daily in US 2023
- Telegram users hit 800 million monthly in 2023
- Global social commerce sales reached $992 billion in 2023
- Reddit had 73 million daily users in 2023
- Indonesia's social media users totaled 167 million in 2024
- Discord reached 150 million monthly active users in 2023
Social Media Interpretation
From YouTube’s tutorials to TikTok’s dances, the entire world is now performing its life on a digital stage, meticulously curated and overwhelmingly watched, proving that humanity's greatest shared project is no longer a civilization but a broadcast.
Traditional Media
- Global TV households numbered 1.1 billion in 2023
- Worldwide radio listeners averaged 2.5 hours daily in 2023
- US newspaper circulation fell to 20.9 million daily in 2023
- Global advertising spend on TV was $184 billion in 2023
- Print magazine revenue worldwide dropped to $25 billion in 2023
- In Europe, 70% of adults read print newspapers weekly in 2023
- India's TV viewers numbered 900 million in 2023
- Global podcast listeners reached 464 million monthly in 2023
- UK radio reach was 89% of population weekly in 2023
- Cable TV subscribers in US totaled 62 million in 2023
- Global book publishing revenue hit $143 billion in 2023
- China's state TV audience was 1.2 billion in 2023
- Average daily TV viewing time globally was 2.8 hours in 2023
- US magazine print circulation was 130 million in 2023
- World radio stations numbered over 45,000 in 2023
- Brazil's TV homes reached 73 million in 2023
- Global news consumption via TV was 40% in 2023 survey
- Australia radio listeners averaged 14.5 hours weekly in 2023
- Print media ad spend globally $80 billion in 2023
- Japan newspaper subscribers 32 million daily in 2023
- Satellite TV users worldwide 300 million in 2023
- Global outdoor media spend $25 billion in 2023
- France TV audience share 80% daily reach in 2023
- Cinema box office global $33 billion in 2023
Traditional Media Interpretation
The story these numbers tell is of a world still bewitched by the glowing screen—with television’s vast reach and advertising dollars towering over the media landscape—yet stubbornly charmed by the tactile hum of radio and the rustle of print, proving our habits are both global in scale and deeply, quaintly local.
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