Growing adoption of 5G services in Singapore is expected to boost its mobile data service revenue growth, which will in turn drive the country’s overall mobile service revenue to reach $2.1 billion by the end of 2028, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3% during 2023-28, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

GlobalData’s Singapore Mobile Broadband Forecast (Q1-2024) reveals that mobile voice service revenue will decline at a 5.9% CAGR over the forecast period due to the widespread consumer shift towards over-the-top (OTT)-based communication platforms and the subsequent decline in voice service average revenue per user (ARPU) levels.

Mobile data service revenue, on the other hand, will increase at a healthy CAGR of 4.7% between 2023 and 2028, driven by the growing consumption of mobile data services and the projected rise in higher-ARPU yielding-5G subscriptions as 5G services become more widely available across the country.

Kantipudi Pradeepthi, Telecom Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “Though 4G will remain the leading mobile technology, in terms of subscriptions, until 2024, 5G service will see its subscriptions surpass 4G subscriptions in 2025, occupying an impressive 88% share of the total mobile subscriptions by the end of 2028. This growth in 5G subscriptions will be primarily driven by rising demand for high-speed data services, ongoing 5G network expansions by mobile network operators (MNOs), and a subsequent increase in the availability of 5G services across the nation.”

Singtel will continue to dominate the mobile services market in terms of subscriptions through 2028, given its strong position in both the prepaid and postpaid segments and its focus on 5G network developments and expansion across the country.

Pradeepthi concludes: “Singtel’s market position is also supported by its strategy to offer data-centric plans with additional benefits and loyalty programs such as Red Memberships. Moreover, the operator is actively seeking partnership and collaboration opportunities with system integrators, app developers, IoT solution providers, and other ecosystem partners to develop new 5G solutions and use cases targeted at its enterprise customers.”