4G usage is growing dynamically in Hungary, but 5G demand is still moderate

Rapid advances in technology, the dynamic growth of digital solutions, and the ever-increasing number of residential and business users make the continued availability and high reliability of high data-capacity and high-availability fixed and mobile telecommunications networks essential. Although recent years have not fully confirmed experts’ expectations for a rapid take-up of 5^th generation mobile technology, relevant international studies have identified a number of factors (e.g. emergence of new technologies, growth in the number of users) that could lead to an explosive growth in 5G subscriptions and solutions.

As part of a comprehensive research on 5G technology, we conducted a survey in the first quarter of 2024 among Hungarian citizens and companies to map the attitudes and opinions of stakeholders on 5G use.

1. Public research

The public survey revealed that the vast majority of respondents have a smartphone and 9 out of 10 also have a private and/or business mobile internet subscription, with nearly three quarters of them actively using their subscription. 37% of mobile internet subscriptions (both residential and business) now come with an unlimited data plan, while almost half of residential subscriptions and more than half of business subscriptions provide users with at least 10 GB of data.

According to respondents, the current level of coverage is not a significant constraint to the uptake of 5G technology, nor is the cost of mobile internet subscriptions and 5G-enabled devices a significant bottleneck.

However, the further take-up of 5G is strongly constrained by the user patterns emerging from the research, as the most popular services among smartphone internet users are still those (e.g. emailing, searching news, browsing social networking sites, chatting) that do not currently require the basic capabilities of 5G (e.g. low latency or high bandwidth).

Another factor hindering the spread of 5G is that for most people, it is basically irrelevant what generation of mobile technology their device is using; what matters is that the bandwidth and coverage are adequate.

This is supported by the fact that when buying a new smartphone, one of the least important features is the availability of 5G capability, with the focus shifting to data security, reliability, life expectancy and battery life.

The benefits associated with 5G are not at the forefront of people’s expectations of mobile internet services, with the focus on service reliability, network coverage, network and data security, and the price of service packages.

The results of the empirical research show that the public does not see 5G as risky from a data security, environmental or health point of view, and the majority of people believe that 5G will offer much more opportunities than 4G in 2-3 years. Overall, respondents have neutral (40%) or positive (47%) impressions of 5G.

Based on the survey results, public demand for 5G is estimated to be limited to 15-35% of users at most, based on current usage patterns (mainly for watching movies and TV series online, playing online games, using video streaming services, studying and working at home).

2. Business research

Similarly to the public survey results, the vast majority of Hungarian small and medium-sized enterprises have basic digital devices (laptop, PC, smartphone), and 79-84% also report having 5G-enabled devices.

Almost all respondents also have some type of wireless data solution, and 9 out of 10 businesses also have a fixed broadband connection.

Of the data transmission solutions (fixed or wireless), businesses are most likely to use an office WIFI network (89%) and a fixed internet subscription (88%), while more than three quarters (79%) have a 4G and almost two thirds (61%) a 5G mobile internet subscription.

Our survey shows that a number of factors can currently be identified in the Hungarian 5G market that are holding back the rapid take-up of the technology among Hungarian companies. These include the low penetration of digital solutions that can exploit the capabilities of 5G (e.g. IoT, industrial robots, autonomous/self-driving vehicles, AR/VR), as well as, paradoxically, the fact that the majority of the businesses surveyed are satisfied with their existing fixed line subscriptions and do not plan to switch to 5G. It is also not conducive to the further take-up of this technology that 8 out of 10 of those who said they were not interested in 5G said that the current wireless service was enough for them, and 6 out of 10 said they did not have a device that required the use of this technology.

The fact that the key business requirements for wireless data services do not include 5G-related requirements (e.g. low latency, stable connection at high speeds, high device density) at the front line does not support the further advance of 5G.

However, for the future roll-out of 5G, it is welcome that the vast majority of businesses surveyed believe that 5G services will offer many more opportunities in 2-3 years than are currently available. Nearly half of respondents believe the spread of self-driving cars will bring the much-awaited breakthrough for 5G.