The total number of Machine-to-Machine (M2M) / Internet of Things (IoT) cellular connections in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region are projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.1% from 2025 to 2030 and reach 1.3 billion by end of 2030.
This increase is mainly driven by 5G advancements, expanding digital infrastructure, and increasing availability and use cases for IoT ecosystems, particularly in developed countries in the region, forecasts GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.
GlobalData’s Asia-Pacific Total Mobile Broadband Forecast (Q2 2025) reveals that 5G mobile subscriptions in the region are expected to grow at a CAGR of 11.4% between 2025 and 2030, driven by the expanding network coverage, particularly in mature mobile markets. South Korea, Japan, Singapore and Australia are at the forefront of 5G adoption, with Hong Kong and China achieving the highest 5G penetration rates in the region in 2025.
Kantipudi Pradeepthi, Telecom Analyst at GlobalData, says: “The expansion and evolution of 5G networks, which offers ultra-low latency, high-bandwidth connectivity and the capacity to connect massive number of devices crucial for M2M/IoT ecosystems will be a crucial for the market growth over the forecast period. Developed markets in the region, backed by high 5G penetration and mature digital infrastructure are naturally expected to lead IoT adoption, and see higher M2M connections.”
The evolving use cases across manufacturing, healthcare, agriculture, transportation, and security, and in digital infrastructure applications like smart cities, smart buildings, smart grids, smart stores, etc. combined with telcos’ dedicated connectivity plans will also drive M2M/IoT adoption in the region over the forecast period.
For instance, PLDT of Philippines is seen offering M2M/IoT solutions targeting smart city, smart stores, smart building, smart utilities, and smart manufacturing use cases for its business consumers.
New Zealand operator Spark offers IoTs connected mobility solutions to healthcare, agriculture & transportation sectors that helps in device management, managing costs, and security.
In India, Bharti Airtel provides M2M SIM cards in various form factors such as Industrial-grade M2M SIMs, Consumer-grade M2M SIMs, Embedded M2M SIMs, and eSIMs to suit different deployment scenarios.
Pradeepthi concludes: “The increasing demand for high-speed connectivity and enterprise-grade IoT solutions is poised to significantly reshape the mobile landscape across the APAC region. This transformation presents telcos with opportunities for new revenue streams and diversification.”
“Operators that focus on expanding wireless coverage for IoT devices, enhance network reliability for critical applications, and bundle customized data-centric IoT services such as device management platforms and tailored industry solutions will be well-positioned to capitalize on the trend and unlock substantial long-term revenue potential.”
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