Almost three quarters (72.6 percent) of internet users will access the web solely via their smartphones by 2025, equivalent to nearly 3.7 billion people. Just over 1.3 billion are forecast to access the internet via smartphone and PC by 2025, according to a report published Thursday by the World Advertising Research Center (WARC), using data from mobile trade body GSMA. Sixty-nine million will access the internet via PC only. WARC estimates that around 2 billion people currently access the internet via only their smartphone, which equates to 51 percent of the global base of 3.9 mobile users. Most of the growth in smartphone use will come from China, India, Indonesia, Nigeria and Pakistan, but there will still be 2.4 billion people who do not own a mobile phone by 2025, the report said. These figures present huge opportunities for businesses to sell products via the mobile internet — already, $101 billion was spent via mobile apps alone in 2018, according to a report by App Annie. China accounted for almost 40 percent of that spend, which included paid downloads, in-app purchases and subscription fees, with most of the money spent on gaming.

Fifth-generation technology, or 5G, which will start to be rolled out this year, will improve download speeds, meaning that videos will be easier to watch via smartphone. "Advertisers will be able to reach this audience with high-quality … advertising across a near-constant connection," WARC's report states. At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this month, mobile companies promoted their 5G networks, which Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg has called a "quantum leap" compared to 4G capabilities. Last week, IBM and Vodafone announced a partnership aiming to help Europe catch up with China and the U.S. in terms of 5G services.

Mobile vs. TV

Companies are forecast to spend more on advertising their products via smartphone than they do on TV by the end of 2019 — if current growth rates are maintained — in 12 countries including the U.S., U.K. and China, according to WARC data. In 2018, businesses spent $137.9 billion on advertising via smartphone, which is equivalent to $35.36 per user. Advertising via social media on smartphones is the most popular way to reach consumers in the EMEA and APAC regions that WARC surveyed in March 2018, with video ads coming second, followed by mobile search.