The Virtualized Evolved Packet Core (vEPC) Market is estimated to be valued at USD 9.2 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach USD 40.2 billion by 2035, registering a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15.9% over the forecast period.
Metric | Value |
---|---|
Virtualized Evolved Packet Core (vEPC) Market Estimated Value in (2025 E) | USD 9.2 billion |
Virtualized Evolved Packet Core (vEPC) Market Forecast Value in (2035 F) | USD 40.2 billion |
Forecast CAGR (2025 to 2035) | 15.9% |
The virtualized evolved packet core (vEPC) market is undergoing substantial expansion, supported by the accelerating shift toward software-defined networking, increasing 5G deployments, and growing demand for scalable mobile core solutions. Operators are prioritizing virtualized core infrastructure to improve agility, reduce operational costs, and accelerate service rollout.
The transition to cloud-native architectures has further strengthened the adoption of vEPC as telecom providers seek to decouple hardware and software, enabling flexible and dynamic resource allocation. Industry momentum is being fueled by edge computing, IoT integration, and heightened need for ultra-low latency in next-generation mobile services.
Investment strategies by telecom giants and infrastructure vendors are increasingly focused on virtualized, interoperable platforms that support seamless upgrades and automation. Looking ahead, the market is expected to benefit from open interface support, public-private 5G initiatives, and rising demand for private networks across enterprise sectors.
The market is segmented by Component, Network Type, Deployment Mode, End User, and Application and region. By Component, the market is divided into Solution and Services. In terms of Network Type, the market is classified into 5G Network and 4G Network. Based on Deployment Mode, the market is segmented into Cloud and On-Premises. By End User, the market is divided into Telecom Operators and Enterprises. By Application, the market is segmented into LTE, VoLTE, and VoWiFi, IoT and M2M, and Broadband Wireless Access. Regionally, the market is classified into North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Balkan & Baltic Countries, Russia & Belarus, Central Asia, East Asia, South Asia & Pacific, and the Middle East & Africa.
The solution segment is anticipated to capture 58.0% of the total vEPC market revenue in 2025, positioning it as the leading component type. This leadership is being driven by increased adoption of full-stack vEPC solutions that offer mobility management, session handling, and policy control within a unified framework.
These solutions provide operators with modular and scalable capabilities, improving time-to-market for services such as VoLTE, mobile broadband, and mission-critical IoT. Demand has also been influenced by integration flexibility, which allows interoperability across multi-vendor ecosystems.
The shift toward software-centric infrastructure has positioned end-to-end solution packages as preferred investments, enabling reduced dependency on legacy hardware and better alignment with 5G core migration strategies.
5G network deployments are projected to account for 64.0% of the market share in 2025, making it the most dominant network type in the vEPC market. This growth is being driven by rising adoption of standalone 5G networks that require virtualized and cloud-native core architectures.
Operators are increasingly leveraging vEPC to deliver low-latency and high-bandwidth services across industrial automation, smart cities, and real-time video applications. The need to support diverse quality-of-service requirements and network slicing capabilities has further solidified vEPC’s relevance in the 5G era.
As telcos and private enterprises invest in next-gen mobile infrastructure, virtualized cores are being positioned as foundational elements for ensuring rapid deployment and network scalability.
Cloud-based deployment is expected to command 71.0% of the vEPC market revenue in 2025, making it the most widely adopted deployment mode. This segment's dominance is being supported by the need for flexible, elastic, and geographically distributed infrastructure capable of supporting varied data and service demands.
Cloud deployment allows for cost-efficient scaling and easier network orchestration, which is critical in dynamic, high-throughput environments like 5G. Telecom operators are increasingly transitioning to public and hybrid cloud models to reduce infrastructure overhead and accelerate service delivery.
In addition, cloud-native vEPC solutions align with CI/CD practices, enabling rapid iteration, automated upgrades, and simplified lifecycle management. As demand grows for decentralized applications and edge connectivity, cloud deployment is expected to remain the backbone of modern vEPC strategies.
As per the Global Virtualized Evolved Packet Core research by Future Market Insights - a market research and competitive intelligence provider, historically, from 2020 to 2024, the value of the Virtualized Evolved Packet Core increased at around 23.6% CAGR.
The key revenue drivers which affect the Virtualized Evolved Packet Core demand include an increase in data traffic on mobile networks.
By the end of 2024, it is predicted that monthly mobile data traffic would amount to about 51 exabytes (EB), and by the end of 2029, it is anticipated to total 226 EB. Currently, 66% of all mobile data traffic is video. Both the rising average amount of data per subscription and the growing subscription rate for smartphones are pivotal for the increase in traffic.
India, one of the countries where data traffic growth has been on the rise, continues to account for the highest monthly smartphone usage at 15.7 GB.
The key factors which are propelling the Virtualized Evolved Packet Core demand include chances for MNOs to benefit from the expansion of the IoT sector. It is anticipated that mobile network operators would commercially use virtual EPC in their live networks to serve a variety of use cases.
In the heterogeneous IoT world, the ability of MNOs to cost-effectively modify their networks for specific clients, sectors, and applications is crucial.
Additionally, it enables ISPs and businesses to connect mobile and IoT devices, data centers, and public or private clouds by supporting low-latency use cases at the network edge. By connecting all different kinds of devices, systems, and services, the Internet of Things and the ongoing development of Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communication networks have been revolutionizing several industries.
IoT is one of the numerous use cases that 5G that would allow and enable communication between a significant number of connected devices and sensors, with the help of network segmentation.
According to their application needs, high-performance, low-latency applications such as mobile video surveillance and low-power, low-latency, long-range IoT apps can be separated. The shift from LTE to 5G is expected to quicken in order to fulfill the demands for creating IoT applications, which are characterized as massive machine-type communication and mission-critical applications.
The growth of the vEPC market is being driven by the requirement to support the steadily rising number of devices connecting to the Internet. The COVID-19 outbreak has caused a significant drop in Internet of Things connectivity. Narrowband-IoT (NB-IoT) and Cat-M are anticipated to account for 52% of all cellular IoT connections, according to the Ericsson Mobility Report. 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G services are further important IoT mobile connectivity modalities.
One of the key factors restraining the market of Virtualized Evolved Packet Core is growing security concerns. The network, which can result in significant losses for both enterprises and service providers, is a key issue for CIOs. SDN, NFV, and cloud-native architecture were used to construct the new network infrastructure.
Local, regional, and centralized data centers house the network functions, which are isolated from the underlying infrastructure. Most network services in a 4G/LTE cloud network are deployed through public and private cloud infrastructure.
The current legacy networks (2G, 3G, and 3.5G) and internet service networks are connected to the 4G/LTE network, as well as vertical industry networks including automotive, medical, factories, and IoT devices. With a focus on 4G/LTE networks, it will build a network connection fabric made up of intricate heterogeneous networks.
North America is expected to account for the largest Virtualized Evolved Packet Core market throughout the projection period. Due to the presence of sizable telecom oligopolies, the North American area is anticipated to account for a sizeable portion of the market for vEPC solution providers. Mobile service providers use their networks, including wireless broadband, Internet of Things (IoT), and machine-to-machine (M2M).
The introduction of the Citizen Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) band by the US government in 2020 for private operators and businesses will serve as a driver for the expansion of vEPC solutions in the enterprise market.
The market in the region is expanding as a result of the rising demand for VoLTE and the growing use of multimedia services. Also, the government initiatives encourage the development of the mature virtualized packet market as well as the presence of numerous telecom behemoths in the area.
The USA is expected to account for the highest market of USD 40.2 Billion by the end of 2035. It is expected to be projected to account for an absolute dollar growth of USD 4.4 Billion. The vEPC industry benefitted from the US government's 2020 establishment of the Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) band for companies and private operators.
VoLTE demand and enhanced multimedia service rollout should both lead to further growth in the market in the area. In the coming years, the regional market will continue to expand significantly due to the presence of sophisticated telecommunications network infrastructure and the rising use of 4G technology. The existence of numerous telecom behemoths and advantageous government measures that increase the utilization of virtualized evolving packet cores may serve as further growth drivers.
The high-value market for virtualized evolved packet core market in the country is also supported by the market-leading companies present in the region such as Cisco, Affirmed Networks, Mavenir, Parallel Wireless, Polaris Network, Xingtera, Lemko, Tecore, among others.
The service component of Virtualized Evolved Packet Core accounted for the highest market for Virtualized Evolved Packet Core. Demand growth of Virtualized Evolved Packet Core Services was recorded at 23.4% from 2020 to 2024, while it is expected to grow at a CAGR of 15.6% from 2025 to 2025. The demand for support services among telecom operators and businesses is anticipated to expand as the use of vEPC solutions develops.
The use of vEPC services can minimize expenses and operational costs, boost overall revenue, and enhance corporate performance. Organizations can monitor, assess, and analyze their business requirements with the use of these services in order to make wiser decisions.
5G Network is the most widely utilized network for Virtualized Evolved Packet Core. Demand growth through the 5G Network was recorded at 23.1% from 2020 to 2024, while it is expected to grow at a CAGR of 15.4% from 2025 to 2025. The modern vEPC architecture is an open-source environment for cloud-Native networking. Because mobile networks were held in structure for decades and vendors have effectively not changed, businesspeople are restricted to the legacy vendor architecture.
From the same perspective that a majority of the same functionality only is now available because of the development of new networking technology, networks are now being transitioned from the old network to software-defined, automated 5G NSA architecture. Software-based architecture is more prone to providing automation and improved service adaptability.
A good example of a 5G use case that would focus on the industrial and business vertical sectors is the installment of APIs to manage all aspects of a network's resources. These services should be submitted by APIs that automate all kinds of a network's resources in order to perform properly.
Players in the market are constantly developing improved analytical solutions as well as extending their product offerings. The companies in Virtualized Evolved Packet Core are focused on their alliances, technology collaborations, and product launch strategies. The Tier 2 Players in the market are targeting to increase their Virtualized Evolved Packet Core share.
Some of the recent developments in the Virtualized Evolved Packet Core Market are:
The global virtualized evolved packet core (vEPC) market is estimated to be valued at USD 9.2 billion in 2025.
The market size for the virtualized evolved packet core (vEPC) market is projected to reach USD 40.2 billion by 2035.
The virtualized evolved packet core (vEPC) market is expected to grow at a 15.9% CAGR between 2025 and 2035.
The key product types in virtualized evolved packet core (vEPC) market are solution, _mme, _hss, _s-gw, _pdn-gw, services, _professional services, _consulting services, _integration and deployment services, _training and support services and _managed services.
In terms of network type, 5G network segment to command 64.0% share in the virtualized evolved packet core (vEPC) market in 2025.
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