The GSMA has said that as global economic pressures mount and market uncertainties persist, enterprises worldwide are seeking innovative ways to enhance productivity, manage risk and gain greater control over their operations.
    
GSMA said with full capability 5G Standalone (5G SA) networks and a consultative business approach, operators reach the point of true 5G maturity, creating innovative service opportunities that will unlock a new wave of industrial innovation allowing enterprises to potentially add an extra $4.7 trillion to the global GDP and create 7.3 million new jobs across industries.
    
The telecom advocacy body noted that with the full technical deployment of 5G SA and the business transformation needed to fully unlock 5G’s potential, mobile operators are completing the 5G journey, and commencing a new commercial era – one where operators can monetise differentiated services, meet precise enterprise demands, and play a pivotal role in digital transformation across industries.
   
This combination, according to the body, results in operators that can move beyond connectivity to enable innovation, build strategic partnerships and new revenue streams to create lasting competitive advantage – which is critical for operators looking to capitalise on an addressable market of $186 billion, the forecast growth opportunity to 2030.
    
It noted that businesses across the globe face distinct but interconnected challenges, saying in mature markets like Europe, North America, Japan, and Australia, companies grapple with slow or flat growth in local economies, placing greater emphasis on cost control than in previous decades. 
     
“Meanwhile, businesses in emerging markets balance growth pressures with preparations for potential future slowdowns. Regardless of geography, executives face increasing accountability demands from regulators and shareholders regarding energy consumption, social responsibility, and employee safety,” it stated.
     
In this environment, GSMA said mobile technology has emerged as the critical enabler for addressing challenges and seizing new opportunities. It stressed that the right technological infrastructure unleashes productivity through data analytics, automation, and optimisation while facilitating the virtualisation of value chains.
    
“As we look to the future, the impact of artificial intelligence will further transform business operations, but only with the support of secure, resilient, and capable connectivity networks,” it stated.
     
GSMA said completing the 5G journey unlocks powerful new capabilities for enterprises, offering dedicated network slices tailored to specific use cases, ultra-low latency for real-time operations, and massive scalability for IoT.
    
It said businesses can deploy customised virtual networks with guaranteed performance, enabling use cases like critical infrastructure monitoring, autonomous vehicles, and real-time AI applications. It said the integration of mobile edge computing further enhances responsiveness, making 5G SA ideal for industries requiring split-second decisions and automation at scale.
    
“Built with security at its core, 5G SA strengthens data protection with advanced encryption, secure authentication, and greater control over network resources. This is particularly valuable for sectors with strict compliance needs, such as finance, healthcare, and defence. Additionally, its capacity to support large-scale, low-power IoT networks opens new opportunities in smart cities, industrial automation, and environmental monitoring, helping organisations achieve greater operational insight and efficiency,” it stated.