5G is a Metaverse Facilitator: study of Ericsson

The Swedish telecom firm Ericsson has published a study on the impact that advanced data transmission technologies, such as 5G, have on the adoption of metaverse and extended reality technology. The study polled 49,000 consumers in 37 countries and is considered to be indicative of the views of 1.7 billion people globally. It contains monitoring data from Ericsson as of 2019.
Users of 5G are more interested in immersive technology than their 4G counterparts, according to survey data. Compared to 4G users, 5G users already spend an hour more per week on platforms and services related to the metaverse. The use of the metaverse is anticipated to increase in line with the estimated reach of 5G technology, which is anticipated to reach 510 million customers this year.
Six out of ten 5G users globally think that this technology is “necessary” for the metaverse to materialise to its full potential. According to the study, carriers can gain by bundling their own metaverse applications with 5G plans. Spanish carrier Telefonica and Japanese carrier NTT Docomo are already making preparations to be able to provide users with metaverse experiences in the future.
The metaverse will undoubtedly shift to other, more immersive platforms in the future, according to the survey, which found that consumers of 5G data think this. According to the poll, half of 5G users who now use of metaverse and extended reality applications predict that in the next two years, these services would move to XR (extended reality) headsets.
The results of the survey were surprising for the company.
Jasmeet Singh Sethi, head of Ericsson consumerlab, said that, “It’s intriguing to see how 5G is developing as a key facilitator for early adopters to accept services connected to the metaverse, such interacting with one another, playing games, and purchasing virtual goods in interactive 3D virtual gaming platforms. Over the previous two years, 5G users’ time spent using augmented reality apps has also doubled.”