Network and software infrastructure market seen growing to $22.28B by 2030

The global network and software infrastructure market is projected to rise from $16.24 billion in 2026 to $22.28 billion by 2030, according to a new market report from The Business Research Company. Demand is being driven by 5G adoption, edge computing, smart city expansion and rising mobile data traffic.

Why it matters: - Network and software infrastructure is becoming a core layer for smart cities, linking connectivity, data handling, application deployment and communication. - The market’s growth points to rising spending on the systems that support real-time analytics, automation, cyber resilience and municipal service delivery. - Mobile data growth and 5G adoption are increasing pressure on urban networks, which raises the need for more capacity and more efficient routing.

What happened: - The Business Research Company released its Network and Software Infrastructure Global Market Report 2026 on Oct. 6, 2026. - The report estimates the market reached $16.24 billion in 2026, up from $15.04 billion in 2025. - The report projects the market will reach $22.28 billion by 2030, implying an 8.2% CAGR over the forecast period. - North America held the largest regional market share in 2025. - Asia-Pacific is expected to grow the fastest during the forecast period. - The report covers Asia-Pacific, South East Asia, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North America, South America, the Middle East and Africa.

The details: - The market’s recent expansion has been supported by urban broadband and fiber buildout, early IoT sensor deployments in cities, government smart city investment, 4G rollouts and data center construction. - Growth through 2030 is expected to come from standalone 5G and eventual 6G adoption in urban areas, wider use of edge computing, autonomous mobility, real-time city analytics and automation, and cyber-resilience upgrades. - Key trends include edge-native distributed computing, software-defined networking for city traffic flows, interoperable data exchange platforms, zero-trust security models and hybrid cloud-edge integration. - The report defines network and software infrastructure as the hardware, software and networking technologies that support connectivity, data handling, application deployment and communication within smart city systems. - The report says the infrastructure improves operational efficiency, resource management and service delivery across urban IoT and ICT platforms. - One driver of demand is rising mobile data traffic from internet browsing, video streaming and app usage. - High-bandwidth services such as streaming and cloud computing are pushing mobile network data consumption higher. - Ericsson projected in November 2025 that the share of mobile data traffic carried over 5G would rise from 34% at the end of 2024 to 43% by the end of 2025 and 83% by 2031. - The report says that shift to 5G is a major contributor to demand for network and software infrastructure technologies. - The 2026 report edition adds market attractiveness scoring, TAM analysis, company scoring matrices, Excel forecasting dashboards, hotspot infographics and updated graphics and tables.

Between the lines: - The forecast suggests smart city infrastructure is moving from pilot projects to more integrated, citywide systems. - The emphasis on edge computing, zero-trust security and hybrid cloud-edge setups signals a market that is shifting toward lower latency, tighter security and faster local processing. - The region split points to mature demand in North America and faster buildout potential in Asia-Pacific, where urbanization and infrastructure upgrades are still expanding.

What's next: - The report expects standalone 5G and 6G, edge computing and autonomous mobility to keep driving market growth through 2030. - Demand should continue to rise as cities modernize networks to handle more data, more connected devices and more automated services. - The Business Research Company is offering a free sample report and the full market report online.