17 October 2003 Scottsdale, AZ Lightwave --Despite the recent demise of various Metro Ethernet service providers, Metro Ethernet has established itself as a growing data service, contends a new report from high-tech market research firm In-Stat/MDR. Relatively inexpensive when compared to more traditional metro networking gear, such as SONET, Ethernet helps facilitate not only lower costs on bandwidth services, but lower Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) as well. As a result, In-Stat/MDR expects that Metro Ethernet services will continue to have a strong growth rate, especially as the need for additional Internet bandwidth rises.
With its ability to add data-centric protocols to the network without disturbing the ongoing, high-margin voice circuits, the Multiservice Provisioning Platform (MSPP) will prove to be the best mode by which service providers can provision Metro Ethernet, say analysts. By either encapsulating Ethernet packets within SONET Payload Envelopes (SPEs) to create Packet-over-SONET (PoS) connections across the MAN, or by sending optical Ethernet directly over DWDM-enabled optical fibers, MSPPs provide the carrier with relatively quick and inexpensive ways to meet data networking needs--while not disturbing the high-value circuits and allowing for more revenue potentials over the exact same set of fibers. As a result, the MSPP market has been growing for the last four years and will continue to do so over the next five years, with a double-digit compound annual growth rate (CAGR) starting from $1.2 billion in 2002.
The report also finds that the RBOCs will be in the best overall position to capitalize on the metro Ethernet market growth. RBOCs own the largest percentage of fiber-optic lines in use today. Moreover, the recent FCC Triennial Review should encourage more RBOC deployments.
Thanks to improvements in the technology of MSPPs, they often take up much less space than the equipment they are replacing. This enables carriers to re-coup floor space in congested central offices and to perhaps add value-added services.
Because MSPPs are protocol-agnostic, carriers can also manage clumsy SONET-base circuits much more easily than ever before--and often remotely. This helps carriers to reduce operational expenditures, which, in turn, helps them improve margins.
The report, "MSPPs: Evolution beats revolution," includes a worldwide five-year forecast broken down by shipments, ASPs, and revenues as well as a summary comparison of popular MSPPs currently being offered. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.instat.com.