Vendor shakeup in network security market starts in Q2, more to come

CAMPBELL, USA: Telecom market research firm Infonetics Research released excerpts from its 2nd quarter 2014 (2Q14) Network Security Appliances and Software report, which tracks integrated security appliances, secure routers, SSL VPN gateways, VPN and firewall software, and intrusion detection and prevention products.

"The network security market saw a change in leadership for the first time in a very long time, with Fortinet and Palo Alto Networks each moving up a notch among the top five vendors, now in the third and fourth positions, respectively," notes Jeff Wilson, principal analyst for security at Infonetics Research.

He adds, "Given the current climate in security, we look for more changes or even some consolidation, with Check Point, Cisco, Dell SonicWall, Fortinet, Juniper, McAfee, and Palo Alto battling it out for share."

* Worldwide network security appliance and software revenue came off a seasonal 1st quarter lull to post fairly typical 2nd quarter growth: the market is up 4 percent sequentially in 2Q14, to $1.6 billion.

* Year-over-year growth in the network security market also hit 4 percent in 2Q14.

* Integrated security -- appliances, software, and SSL VPN products -- made up 83 percent of total network security revenue in 2Q14, with the majority coming from appliances.

* Intrusion detection systems (IDSs) and intrusion prevention systems (IPSs), meanwhile, represented 17 percent of the overall revenue.