5G availability in Italy 2023, by provider

In Italy, as of 2023, WindTre 5G users had the most active 5G connections, at almost 25 percent of the time. Iliad, meanwhile, recorded availability of 21.5 percent. By contrast, TIM had the lowest availability, at 5.5 percent.

What is 5G?

5G – the fifth generation of mobile broadband – is the new standard wireless cellular technology, following 4G. Today, this technology is available in many countries and regions such as the United States and Europe. 5G has both advantages and disadvantages. On the one hand, 5G can connect more devices and guarantees high speeds, low latency, increased capacity, and broader bandwidth. On the other hand, 5G is available only in specific locations and has a reduced broadcast distance compared to 4G. Finally, this technology consumes more battery power, and, given its ability to connect many devices, can easily lead to cyberattacks.

Italy investing in 5G

Given its many advantages, the Italian government appointed plans to implement and deploy 5G, i.e., the “Italia 1 Giga” Plan and the “Italia 5G Plan, with the latter being worth around 949 million euros. Moreover, the 5G deployment cumulative costs of the country are expected to reach 8.5 billion euros by 2025. Among the telecom providers, Telecom and Vodafone are investing the highest amount, according to the 2018 auction, at around 2.4 billion euros each, while Iliad, WindTre, and Fastweb focused on specific 5G frequencies, totaling around 1.6 billion euros altogether.