Infonetics forecasts 15–20 percent annual growth for ROADM WSS component market 2012–2015

BOSTON, USA: Infonetics Research released excerpts from its latest ROADM Components report, which tracks the Reconfigurable Optical Add/Drop Multiplexer optical network equipment market and the wavelength selective switch (WSS) components within it, measured by spacing technology and degree-count.

Andrew Schmitt, Infonetics Research’s directing analyst for optical, said: “Growth in the WSS component market paused during the past 18 months as a result of excessive supply chain inventory and a period of slower ROADM equipment sales. We believe the WSS component market will resume growing this year and maintain annual revenue growth in the range of about 15-20 percent for the next few years, which is the underlying growth rate of the end market of WDM ROADM equipment.”

Highlights
* After spiking +124 percent in 2010, global ROADM WSS component revenue contracted by about 5 percent in 2011.
* The supply issues that led to the 2011 market contraction have been resolved.
* Revenue for WDM ROADM-based optical equipment (not components) grew 36 percent in 2011 from the previous year, outpacing shipments of WSS modules by a wide margin.
* Unit shipments of ROADM WSS components are expected to grow much faster than revenue due to price reductions and a later shift in the mix to smaller 1x4 WSS sizes as ROADMs are deployed further toward the edges of networks.
* The WSS market continues to be controlled by three vendors: CoAdna, Finisar, and JDSU though the advent of colorless and directionless ROADMs creates an opportunity for smaller suppliers like Oclaro and Nistica, as well as nascent Chinese and Japanese companies with fresh prototypes.
* The advent of coherent optics creates a new growth vector for ROADM networks; Infonetics expects that the market share winners of the transition to 40G/100G coherent network equipment will also command a greater share of the ROADM optical equipment market.