The worldwide market for optical components used in terrestrial DWDM and optical-networking applications is expected to quadruple in the next four years from $5 billion in 2000 to nearly $24 billion by 2004 (see Figure). As detailed in a new report from market-research firm RHK Inc. (San Francisco), the market surge will be driven by an underlying growth in systems, the optical content of modules, and higher-priced components.
Raman gain modules, 40-Gbit/sec actives, and tunable lasers will be introduced into optical networks this year, and these products, along with products for optical-bandwidth management, will grow more than 200% per year to more than $4 billion in sales by the end of the forecast period.
"This spectacular year-over-year growth is being driven by double-digit growth in DWDM systems, multiplied by the impact of numerous system-performance improvements such as higher channel counts and faster transmission speeds and by increasing complexity of optical modules," says senior analyst John Lively.
In 2000, the market experienced a 130% growth rate, and no single product category grew less than 80%.
The new optical-component forecast covers the critical components used in terrestrial DWDM systems. For more information about the report or for subscription information, call (650) 737-9600 or visit the company's Website at www.rhk.com.