The estimate is based upon the fact that South Korea is to commercialize 5G services in March next year, making it the first country in the world to do so, with tech giant Samsung Electronics planning to release a model featuring the high-end technology, the market tracker said.

By 2020, 5G will account for 4.7 percent of total market share in the United States, 5.2 percent in Japan and 2.8 percent in China, Strategy Analytics said, adding that its penetration rate would increase after that date in line with the broader establishment of the network.

In 2021, the adoption rate of 5G smartphones is expected to begin to surge in major countries, with numbers hitting 27 percent in the U.S., followed by 21.3 percent in South Korea, 19.7 percent in Japan and 8.5 percent in China.

"The 5G standard will become the mainstream of the global network industry in years to come," said an industry insider.

"In order to continue to lead the market, there is a need to come up with diverse services and content fit for 5G smartphones,"

he added. (Yonhap)