Infonetics: IP/Ethernet at 89% of all Mobile Backhaul Spending

The mobile backhaul equipment market grew 10.3% in 2010 over the previous year, to $6.84 billion worldwide,
according to a recently released Mobile Backhaul Equipment and Services market share and forecast report from Infonetics Research.


Infonetics cites the addition of almost 1.5 billion mobile subscribers and 1.6 billion mobile broadband subscribers between 2011 and 2015 as the key driver. This growth will require more base stations, more cell site connections, higher backhaul capacities, and equipment for each cell site connection.


Infonetics also finds that Ericsson increased its lead in mobile backhaul microwave radio equipment revenue share, posting its best quarter in at least 2 years. As of the second half of 2010, Alcatel-Lucent, Tellabs, Cisco, and Huawei together own over 3/4 of the fast-growing Ethernet cell site routers and gateways segment.


"As operators refresh their 2G networks and transition to 3G, they almost universally adopt IP/Ethernet as the mobile backhaul solution to lower the costs of growing mobile data traffic, using IP as the base technology for 3G, LTE, and WiMAX networks. And the momentum is growing: 89% of the money spent on mobile backhaul equipment in 2010 was for IP/Ethernet gear, with the fastest growth happening in Ethernet cell site routers and gateways and Ethernet packet microwave equipment," explains Michael Howard, principal analyst and co-founder of Infonetics Research.
http://www.infonetics.com