The overall optical network hardware market worldwide, including SONET/SDH and WDM equipment, totaled $2.6 billion in 1Q13, according to a new report from Infonetics.
Some highlights:
- North America was the only region to post growth in overall optical hardware revenue on a quarterly basis in 1Q13, up 7.5% from 4Q12
- Topping the optical market share leaderboard in 1Q13 are, in alphabetical order, Alcatel-Lucent, Ciena, Fujitsu, Huawei and ZTE
- Ciena is now a larger supplier of WDM gear than Alcatel-Lucent and is 2nd only to Huawei
- Cyan, now publicly traded, grew revenue 86% year-over-year (and is now tracked in Infonetics’ Optical Network Hardware report)
- Nokia-Siemens completed its divestiture of its optical division, now called Coriant (also tracked in Infonetics’ optical report)
“The 4-quarter rolling average for global optical WDM equipment revenue notched a third consecutive quarter of growth in 1Q13, and we believe the market will continue trending in a positive direction this year. On a year-over-year basis (1Q12 vs. 1Q13), total optical spending is down 5%, but this is only a result of massive cuts in legacy (SONET/SDH) spending over the past 12 months (down 30%). The WDM segment is up 10% year-over year, a welcome sign that spending in this more relevant segment is returning to long-term trend levels. I won’t call it a recovery until WDM revenue is up by double-digit percents for several quarters on a year-over-year basis, but 2013 is looking good, especially in North America and China, where 100G rollouts are picking up speed," stated Andrew Schmitt, principal analyst for optical at Infonetics Research.
http://www.infonetics.com
