3/11/10 - Market research firm Infonetics Research released its fourth quarter (4Q09) Microwave Equipment market size, market share, and forecast report. The report, published quarterly, tracks vendor market share and market size for TDM microwave equipment, dual Ethernet/TDM microwave equipment, and Ethernet-only equipment split by backhaul, transport, and access.

"With increasing numbers of telecom carriers around the world upgrading their networks to HSPA+ and LTE, Ethernet-based microwave equipment will get a nice boost in 2010 as carriers continue investing in enhanced mobile backhaul solutions. Mobile broadband adoption by consumers and businesses continues to boom, driving operators to upgrade their backhaul provision from cell sites to the core network. Although the market has been a little soft over the last couple of quarters, mobile operators cannot afford to cap investment in their backhaul networks, or they run the risk of losing customers in what are already highly competitive markets," notes Richard Webb , Infonetics Research 's directing analyst for WiMAX, microwave, and mobile devices.

• The worldwide microwave equipment market grew from $4.94 billion to $5.85 billion between 2008 and 2009 (up 18%)
• Following a down quarter in 3Q09, worldwide microwave equipment revenue increased 3% in 4Q09, a modest market performance in a quarter that is usually seasonally strong
• Ethernet-only microwave equipment revenue is forecast by Infonetics to grow at a 100% compound annual growth rate from 2009 to 2014
• The majority of microwave equipment purchased (81% in 4Q09) continues to be deployed to backhaul traffic for mobile backhaul networks
• The single biggest obstacle to the continued adoption of microwave equipment as the dominant backhaul solution is spectrum availability, particularly in Western Europe
• Ericsson and NEC continue in a tight race for revenue leadership in the worldwide microwave equipment market, with Ericsson eking ahead in 2009 by a fraction of a share point
• The big mover of the quarter was Huawei, which jumped into the #3 spot in 4Q09, leap-frogging Nokia Siemens

Infonetics' quarterly microwave report provides worldwide and regional market size, vendor market share, forecasts, vendor and service provider activity, technology roadmaps, market drivers, and in-depth analysis. The report tracks revenue and units for TDM microwave equipment, dual Ethernet/TDM microwave equipment and low- and high-capacity Ethernet equipment, each split by backhaul, transport, and access.

Companies tracked include Adtran, Alcatel-Lucent, Aviat Networks, Bridgewave, Cambridge Broadband, Ceragon, DragonWave, Ericsson, Exalt, Huawei, NEC, Nokia Siemens, Proxim, SIAE, Siklu, Trango, ZTE and others.

Infonetics Research is an international market research and consulting firm serving the communications industry since 1990. A leader in defining and tracking emerging and established technologies in all world regions, Infonetics helps clients plan, strategize, and compete more effectively.

By Robert Hoskins

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