Gigabit FTTH drives record broadband sales says Infonetics

The exploding interest in gigabit broadband helped create record sales of broadband aggregation equipment in 2014, according to Infonetics Research, now part of IHS Inc. (NYSE: IHS). With GPON equipment leading the way, global spending on broadband aggregation equipment jumped 9% percent in 2014, to $8.2 billion, the market research firm reveals in its upcoming "PON, FTTH, and DSL Aggregation Equipment" report.

The year ended on a strong note, with sales of DSL, PON, and point-to-point fiber Ethernet equipment rising 7% sequentially in the fourth quarter of 2014 to $2.2 billion.

"The strength in the broadband aggregation market is due to another record year for GPON equipment, as operators around the world seek a flexible, interoperable technology for offering higher-bandwidth speeds to their customers," according to Jeff Heynen, principal analyst for broadband access and pay TV at Infonetics. "China leads in GPON spending, accounting for half of all GPON sales in 2014, while Latin America notched the largest increase in GPON spending, up 258%. Fierce competition in Brazil combined with key FTTH (fiber-to-the-home) projects in Mexico and Colombia helped expand GPON's reach."

While PON and FTTH soared in 2014, copper-based broadband access network technologies weren't so lucky. Port shipments of VDSL technology rose only 3% during the year, despite the attention paid to VDSL2 with vectoring. Infonetics believes this indicates longer than expected lead times for significant deployments of VDSL2 with vectoring, leading to competition from emerging G.fast as service providers feel pressure from FTTH deployments.

Overall, DSL spending shrank 15% for 2014 versus 2013, according to the report, thanks in large part to price declines in ADSL and VDSL gear.

Infonetics' quarterly broadband aggregation report covers worldwide and regional market size, vendor market share, forecasts through 2019, analysis, and trends for EPON, GPON, FTTH, FTTB, PON, and DSL aggregation equipment and subscribers.

For more information on FTTx equipment and suppliers, visit the Lightwave Buyer's Guide.