Vertical Systems Group has released its U.S. Carrier Ethernet LEADERBOARD results for year-end 2016. The following companies achieved LEADERBOARD status (rank order based on retail port share): AT&T, Level 3, Spectrum Enterprise, Verizon, CenturyLink, Comcast, XO, Windstream and Cox. Spectrum Enterprise includes 2016 port share for Charter Business, Time Warner Cable and Bright House.
To qualify for the LEADERBOARD, providers must have 4% or more of the U.S. Ethernet services market. Shares are measured by the number of customer ports in service as tracked by Vertical Systems Group, with input from surveys of Ethernet providers.
"The pace of growth in the Ethernet market softened in the second half of 2016, finishing at 16% for the full year. This easing is expected to continue as alternative technology solutions are evaluated, such as dark fiber and SD-WAN," said Rick Malone, principal at Vertical Systems Group. "M&A activity is accelerating as Ethernet providers scramble to extend fiber footprints, enhance service technology and enter new markets. Looking forward, the LEADERBOARD will undergo dramatic changes as a result of these transactions."
Analysis of the data indicates:
- Windstream advanced to eighth position on the 2016 LEADERBOARD, up from ninth at Mid-2016.
- Cox moved from eighth to ninth position on the LEADERBOARD.
- Fewer than 10 share points separate the top six LEADERBOARD companies.
- Sprint entered the Challenge Tier, and Integra exited to the Market Player tier.
- Lightpath remains in the Challenge Tier under Altice USA, which also combines share for Suddenlink and Cablevision.
- U.S. LEADERBOARD plus Challenge Tier companies employ more than one-third of all MEF-CECPs worldwide.
Other providers selling Ethernet services in the U.S. are segmented into two tiers as measured by port share. The first or Challenge Tier includes providers with between 1% and 4% share of the U.S. retail Ethernet market. The second or Market Player tier includes all providers with port share below 1%.