Mobile devices will play a transformative role in education especially in developing markets, according to a new report issued by the GSMA. The report, published jointly with McKinsey & Company, calculates that mEducation will be a $70 billion market opportunity by 2020. 
"mEducation is poised to lead to a major transformation of the education landscape," said Ana Tavares Lattibeaudiere, Head of Connected Living at the GSMA. "Mobile operators can play a significant role beyond that of connectivity providers by developing products and managing systems. Teachers can teach in a more innovative and personalised way, leading to greater student engagement, higher attendance and improved achievement. Increased support by governments can assist the process of moving on from pockets of innovation to widespread mobile use in education and ultimately help drive global adoption."
Some predictions from the report:
- mEducation products and services will represent a US$38 billion market, nearly 90 per cent of which will be generated through content such as educational e-books, software including educational apps and platforms such as learning management systems and mobile learning environments.
- The opportunity for mEducation devices, such as smartphones and tablets, will be worth a further US$32 billion by 2020.
- The core opportunity for the mEducation market is the K-12 segment of kindergarten to grade 12 equivalent students, aged between six and 18, which receives around 55 per cent of global expenditure on education. Another key segment is higher education, which commands around 30 per cent of global education expenditure.
- The market is predicted to grow at 50 to 55 per cent CAGR(1) between 2012 and 2020 in developing regions such as Latin America, developing Asia Pacific and Middle East and Africa, compared to 25 to 30 per cent for developed regions of Europe, North America and developed Asia Pacific.
