IHS: Carrier Ethernet drops 2% in 2014, will grow slightly to $29B in 2019

In 2014, the global Ethernet equipment market declined 2 percent from the previous year to $27 billion due to declines in the VDSL, EPON and SONET/SDH segments and a slowdown in microwave sales, said IHS in a new report.

One of the key growth areas in this segment was wireless backhaul where spending rose to $7.9 billion as wholesale operators continued to build out fiber and turn up Ethernet circuits for wireless operators' 4G network migrations. The largest areas of investment were routers, carrier Ethernet switches (CES), microwave and optical gear.

IHS noted that service providers' migration from TDM-based E1/T1 PDH and SONET/SDH to Ethernet and IP is "mostly done, though some way from completion."

Despite the near-term slowdown, IHS forecasted the global carrier Ethernet equipment market will grow at a 1 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2014 to 2019, when it will surpass $29 billion.

"We expect the overall market to grow only slightly through 2019 as pricing and technology changes cause some segments to decline while PDH replacement by Ethernet continues in support of Ethernet services and Ethernet transport," said Michael Howard, senior research director for carrier networks at IHS, in a release.

For more:
- see the release

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