Global Navigation Systems

2023: Global Satellite Navigation Equipment Market Size Up 6% to $52.25 Billion for the Year

At the end of 2023, sales of satellite navigation equipment (Global Navigation Satellite System, GNSS) worldwide reached $52.25 billion. This is almost 6% more compared to 2022, when the market volume was estimated at $49.51 billion. The analysis of the industry is given in the material Market Research Future, presented at the end of December 2024.

One of the main drivers of the sector in question, analysts call the development of smart cars and new services in the field of transport. Many modern machines are equipped with built-in navigation systems, which leads to an increase in demand for GNSS solutions. City traffic management platforms also rely on location systems to monitor vehicles, optimize traffic lights and provide real-time information to passengers. Governments around the world are actively developing smart cities concepts, investing money in various platforms with geolocation functions. The need for improved logistics and asset tracking in supply chains further drives the need for GNSS chips.

In addition, the receivers of satellite navigation systems are integrated into all kinds of portable devices, including smartphones, tablets, laptops and wearable gadgets. Against the background of increased sales of such devices, supplies of GNSS components are also growing. The authors of the report call the rapid development of the Internet of Things (IoT) infrastructure another market driver: many such products support location determination. Enterprises in various fields, including the construction sector, use navigation tools to improve accuracy during work. Technological advances have a positive impact on the industry. For example, the integration of GNSS with new technologies such as artificial intelligence provides advanced data analytics capabilities. In addition, the reliability and accuracy of satellite navigation systems signals are increased.

Three key market segments are identified: satellite navigation itself, differential correction systems (improving the characteristics of navigation platforms - accuracy, reliability, availability) and real-time kinematics (a set of techniques and methods for obtaining planned coordinates and heights of points of terrain of centimeter accuracy). In 2023, the first of these areas accounted for $25 billion: this sector is of paramount importance due to the use of navigation in consumer electronics, transport and other areas. Differential correction tools provided revenue of $15 billion. The contribution of real-time kinematics is estimated at $12.25 billion. Significant players in the industry are named:

• Qualcomm;
• Rockwell Collins;
• Trimble;
• Garmin;
• Magellan;
• Nokia;
• Navcom Technology;
• Skyhook;
• Huawei;
• Sony;
• Stonex;
• TomTom;
• ublox;
• Hexagon;
• Broadcom.

Geographically, North America leads with costs of about $20 billion. This is followed by Europe with an estimate of $15 billion, and the Asia-Pacific region closes the top three with $10 billion. The contribution of South America amounted to $4 billion, while the Middle East and Africa provided $3.25 billion.

In 2024, revenue in the satellite navigation equipment market is estimated at $55.15 billion. Market Research Future analysts believe that in the future, the CAGR will be 5.55%. As a result, by 2032, costs on a global scale could increase to $85 billion.^[1]

2022

As of May 2012, there are two global navigation systems operating in the world:

• Russian GLONASS and
• American GPS.

Two more global navigation systems are also being developed:

• European Galileo and
• China's BeiDou.

And two regional ones that provide navigation only in certain regions of the Earth:

• Japanese Michibiki (designed to supplement GPS in order to clarify it in the Asia-Pacific region) and
• Indian IRNSS. The creators of the Indian positioning system expect to reach the Central East and Africa.

Most likely, all these systems will be included in a single global navigation system.

Research is being carried out to clarify GPS data on signals from other systems - now it is mainly GLONASS. In particular, the use of dual-system receivers significantly improves the availability of a satellite signal - from 85.29% of the Earth's surface when using GPS only to 99.62%.