Survey results show that U.S. manufacturing's interest in private cellular has plummeted 

NEW YORK, May 13, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Global technology intelligence firm ABI Research recently completed its 2025 Manufacturers' Technology Adoption & Attitudes Survey, a comprehensive survey of 458 manufacturing decision-makers across the United States, Malaysia, and Germany to uncover real-world attitudes, adoption trends, and valuable insights that reflect the current technological landscape within the manufacturing industry. Survey results specific to private cellular deployments show that although manufacturing firms in Germany and Malaysia have seen consistent, linear maturation in private cellular growth since 2024, their United States-based counterparts have observed a clear decline, with initial private 5G rollout numbers dipping by 11%.

"Interest in private cellular has declined due to budgeting constraints or reprioritization of transformation initiatives, especially amid tariff uncertainties," explains Shadine Taufik, Research Analyst for Enterprise Connectivity at ABI Research. "Administration changes, geopolitical tensions across key manufacturing hubs in Asia, and prioritization of other, more ROI-centric tech have hindered private cellular growth."

As a leading region for private networks, home to popular network operators such as Verizon and T-Mobile, the U.S. market for the technology could take a hit in the long term, further delaying the rollout and standardization of the connectivity option. This trend was consistent across both 4G and 5G networks.

Compared to 2024, this year saw dips in the number of manufacturing firms scaling private 4G, conducting full implementations, and exploring next iterations of the technology. This disparity is also observed in private 5G—although some firms have expressed interest in considering the technology in 2025, this year has also seen scaling and initial rollout numbers drop. This trend will likely continue as the U.S. administration shapes its trade policies.

However, this drop in private cellular interest does not seem to be a global trend yet – Malaysia and Germany, covered within the ABI Research survey, have seen positive engagement with the technology. Although Malaysia is less mature in its adoption and Germany has solidified itself as a private cellular hub, both have seen positive overall trends, denoting more engagement and faster adoption rates than the US.

Although the US may be a current black spot for private cellular manufacturing, it does not mean that vendors should remain complacent. "ROI for private networks is not widely known—Chief Information Officers would likely rather invest in technologies with more recognizable benefits," Taufik says. "Given the range of uncertainties faced by U.S. companies, as-a-Service offerings must be pushed to promote flexible adoption."

"More than ever, it is important for infrastructure vendors, system integrators, and mobile network operators to promote the cost-saving benefits of private cellular, highlighting the medium-term benefits of their products to elicit greater interest amid the instability," Taufik concludes.

These findings are from ABI Research's Industrial and Manufacturing Survey 2H 2024/1Q 2025: Private Cellular in Manufacturing report. This report is part of the company's Industrial & Manufacturing Markets and Hybrid Cloud & 5G Markets research services, which include research, data, and ABI Insights.

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