In the context of the fair share debate, the GSMA presents the 'Use of mobile networks in Latin America, the first in a series of reports to contribute to the regional discussion with data and evidence. This initial report provides a snapshot of mobile traffic in the region up to May 2024, by company and content type, at an aggregated level and by subregion and/or country. The most conclusive finding of the study is that three companies — Meta, Alphabet (Google), and TikTok — generate more than 70% of mobile download traffic in Latin America. Meta accounts for nearly 50%; Alphabet totals 14% and TikTok, 8%.
The report also examines mobile traffic by type of use, with social media access (41%), web browsing (29%), and streaming (19%) leading the list. This podium repeats throughout the region, with some variations. In Central America and Mexico, for example, the order remains the same, but social media accounts for nearly 60% of the total. In Argentina, Chile, and Paraguay, streaming is above web browsing. In the Andean Region, streaming becomes the most popular type, accounting for 38% of the total. In Brazil, social media accounts for 40%, web browsing 30%, and streaming represents the same percentage as messaging services (10%).
The common denominator in the three cases is the intensive use of video, in short or long format. The demand for data from this content will continue to increase with the advancement of resolutions (from HD to 4K, and eventually 8K) and the expansion of live-streamed events. Audiovisual content is one of the main drivers of sustained mobile traffic growth, which, between 2016 and 2023, multiplied by 14. Only the annual growth in 2023 was greater than the total traffic volume in the region five years earlier, in 2018. By 2030, annual traffic is expected to grow by 22 exabytes (22 billion gigabytes) compared to the previous year, nearly double the annual growth recorded in 2023, which was 12 exabytes. This increase will put even more pressure on the capacity of mobile networks.
“When we see 70% of mobile traffic concentrated in three companies, it can be thought of as just a reflection of user choice. But a considerable part of this traffic is unsolicited, such as the ads we see when opening our apps or videos in resolutions far higher than those we can enjoy on our devices.", points out Lucas Gallitto, Director for Latin America, GSMA.Today, platforms do not pay for the costs of this traffic they monetize, which has a negative impact on user experience, network capacity, and the environment. This highlights the need for fair share: a market mechanism through which large traffic generators contribute to the financing of networks, encouraging more efficient use of this resource that belongs to everyone.”
The report 'Mobile Network Usage in Latin America' is available for download in Portuguese, Spanish and Englishhere.
