June 8, 2006 Redwood City, CA -- According to a newly published report by Dell'Oro Group the worldwide optical transport market grew 9 percent in the first quarter of 2006 compared to the prior year. The report indicates that sales of optical equipment were especially strong in North America, where service providers such as AT&T and Verizon are investing heavily in their fiber optic networks. Slightly declining sales in Europe and Asia partially offset the growth in North America.
"Video over broadband services are driving optical equipment demand in North America," said Shin Umeda, principal analyst for optical transport research at Dell'Oro Group. "On the other hand, the market in Europe has weakened considerably over the last six months, leading us to temper our global outlook for 2006," he added.
The total revenues for the optical transport market reached $2.1 billion in the quarter. Nortel topped the total revenue rankings, helped by 40% growth year-on-year. Lucent was second, with 50% year-on-year growth; Alcatel third with only a 3% gain year-on-year, and Fujitsu fourth, with year-on-year growth of 9%.
The Dell'Oro Group Optical Transport Quarterly Report tracks DWDM long-haul terrestrial, WDM metro, SONET/SDH ADM, SONET/SDH multiservice, and optical switch equipment.