MARCH 28, 2008 -- Information Gatekeepers Inc. (IGI; search for Information Gatekeepers) predicts that the market for components and subassemblies used in reconfigurable optical add/drop multiplexers (ROADMs) will grow from just under $700 million last year to more than $2.2 billion in 2012. This growth will come against the backdrop of increasing use of edge ROADMs in carrier networks.
The forecasts are contained in IGI's new report, ROADMs - From the Core to the Edge, part of the company's Lightwave Series.
In highlighting the significant growth in the demand for ROADM components and subsystems, IGI divides the ROADM space into three architectures, "small switch," "broadcast," and "WSS," which IGI predicts will prove dominant in the future with the addition of the edge ROADM. Along these lines, IGI's components estimates cover blockers, mux/demuxes, tunable lasers, tunable filters, LC switch points, MEMS switch points, total switch points, WSS 1XN switches, monitor points, and splitters/combiners.
The market value forecasts for the 2004 to 2012 study period is shown in the table above.
"ROADMs have become a standard part of long-haul networks -- to be included as a matter of course in any new network, and they have become a major update objective for existing networks," according to Dr. Paul Polishuk, IGI's president. "They have also become of importance in metro networks. The next major step in network control evolution is the addition of ROADMs to the edge of our networks. This change will allow our carriers to offer customers almost instantaneous changes and rearrangements to meet varying needs and to respond to emergencies."
While edge ROADMs provide the focus for IGI's newest study, the report also contains an update on all aspects of core and metro ROADMs as well, including forecasts (with component forecasts separately provided), application information, technology discussions, and vendor information.
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