The increase in sales of wifi routers in businesses was close to 10% in the second quarter, driven by the “digitalization” of organizations. The WLAN (wireless local area network) market grew in the second quarter of 2016. The turnover generated by players in the sector increased by 6.7% both year on year. Compared to the first quarter of the year, reports the IDC firm. Globally, industrial sales exceed $1.35 billion.
The market, which focuses on the sale of wireless routers, is mainly driven by business needs. Their demand increased by 9.4% over the period studied compared to that of 2015. Its most substantial increase in two years, notes the research firm, which explains the trend as “a refresh of the cycles and the financing of initiatives of digital transformation in many companies. 802.11ac wifi is now essential within professional organizations.
Nearly 6 out of 10 wireless access points have AC wifi—a volume that generates 77.4% of revenue. “Even though global economic indicators are mixed, IDC believes that businesses will continue to invest in robust WLAN infrastructure in order to compete effectively in the digital economy,” comments network infrastructure specialist Nolan Greene.
802.11ac Pampered For Its Performance
Standardized by the IEEE in January 2014, 802.11ac stands out from other wifi standards by its use of the 5 GHz band (less congested than 2.4 GHz) and its transport capacity (which can reach 7 Gbit/s theoretical in total using 8 MIMO streams and a bandwidth of 160 MHz)—remembering its backward compatibility with the previous 802.11n (which also supports 5 GHz). All these qualities lead to faster adoption of wifi AC than previous generations, notes IDC.
Less dynamic, the consumer market is recovering with an annual increase of 3.1% in hotspot volume. However, 802.11ac is not enjoying the same success as in business since it only accounts for 22.6% of deliveries but for more than 51% of revenues. A progression that has yet to be seen since 2014, according to the analysis firm.
Asia And Europe At The Forefront
Cisco remains, by far, the leader with 43.7% of the market, even if its share has fallen compared to the 45.2% observed in 2015. This does not prevent its turnover from increasing slightly, by 1. 1% (at $590 million). Its first competitor, HPE/Aruba, saw its turnover decline by 6.1% (to 197.6 million) in one year. Its market share fell to 14.6% compared to 17.1% in 2015. A decline that IDC explains by the exclusion of the H3C activity in China.
The newcomer makes $36.28 million. HPE/Aruba is the only major player to decline. The best progression goes to Ubiquiti Networks: +95.3% in one year for nearly $57 million. If the American manufacturer created in 2005 sees its share increase from 2.4% last year to 4.2% as of June 30. Aerohive also marked an excellent growth of 34.1% over the year to take 2.7% of the market while, solidly, Ruckus Wireless ( Brocade now ) continues its merry way: +7.9% increase ( 91.8 million dollars) for 6.8% of the market.
Regionally, Asia-Pacific (excluding Japan) is the most dynamic in the renewal of corporate WLAN solutions, with a 14.6% increase in requests, which are notably driven by emerging countries such as Vietnam (+79.4%) but also South Korea (+48.3%) still at the forefront of wireless technologies.
Western Europe also stands out (for once, one would be tempted to add in recent quarters) with an increase of 13.6%. Spain (+46.7%) and Sweden (+40.5%) are the best market activators in the region. Central and Eastern Europe is holding on to the wagons (+11%), while the North American market is showing sluggish growth of 7.3% below the world average. The increase in Latin America amounts to 6.8%, and the MEA (Middle East-Africa) region saves the honor (+1.5%). Only Japan declines: -2.4%
