Optical transport network thriving on 40G, 100G

MASSACHUSETTS, USA: Combined, global manufacturer revenue from optical transport network (OTN) transport and OTN switching equipment is forecast by Infonetics to grow to $10.6 billion by 2015, finds Infonetics Research.

"There has been a lot of discussion about the increasing use of OTN in carrier networks, however, until now, little effort by the analyst community to quantify the size of the market," notes Andrew Schmitt, directing analyst, optical at Infonetics Research. "Our OTN report is unique in that it not only tracks OTN hardware, however, it makes the important distinction between mature OTN transport equipment and nascent, fast-growing OTN switching equipment."

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In 2011, OTN transport equipment spending made up 92 per cent of the overall OTN hardware market, while OTN switching made up eight per cent; with the OTN switching segment growing much faster than OTN transport, these proportions will change significantly by 2015.

"Each segment is in a different stage of adoption and has a wildly different growth rate. Case in point: OTN switching revenue jumped 132 per cent in 2010 over 2009, while OTN transport revenue grew nine per cent. Both segments are growing at a pace that far outstrips the 3.7 per cent CAGR of the overall optical market."

Rapid growth in the OTN switching market is expected to continue as 40G and 100G coherent technology roll-outs catalyze the deployment of new technologies, including OTN switching.

Huawei leads in both the OTN transport and switching markets; Huawei is a WDM powerhouse with the added benefit of counting as customers China's telecom carriers, who were the first to readily embrace all-OTN networks, including the largest installations of OTN switching.

OTN switching and transport hardware together made up 45 per cent of global optical equipment spending (WDM and SDH/SONET) in the first half of 2011, and is expected to grow to 70 per cent of the total by 2015.