In-Building Wireless (IBW) systems are showing solid adoption rates and according to the latest forecasts from ABI Research should register almost $10 billion worth of deployments next year.
Corporate campuses, airports and railway stations, and retail shopping centers are the leading verticals where the need for good indoor cellular coverage and throughput is driving the IBW market. Healthcare facilities follow close behind.
The primary drivers for IBW markets are the constantly-growing amount of data traffic, the rapid uptake of smartphones and other data-oriented devices, and consumers’ heightened service expectations”, said Xavier Ortiz, industry analyst at ABI Research.
Many organizations now appreciate the added value IBW systems can bring, and the economic recovery now under way in many regions has meant the resumption of deployments that were shelved during the worst of the slump”, Ortiz added.
The majority of deployments will continue to be found in the Asia-Pacific region, with its high population density and mobile penetration. Europe and North America show consistent but much lower levels of activity with roughly equal deployment numbers in each region.
While the Asia-Pacific region accounts for the majority of IBW deployments, most innovation is coming from North America where many of the largest vendors are based and where budgets can support the often considerable expense of IBW. A little later these innovations filter through to Europe, and then to Asia, where cost-effective solutions are in greatest demand”, said Aditya Kaul, practice director of ABI Research.
While the three largest IBW vendors including TE Connectivity, Andrew and Corning/Mobile Access command almost 60 percent of this complex ecosystem worldwide, it is by innovating, say the analysts, that the smaller players can build a track record and boost their reputations.
By TelecomLead.com Team
editor@telecomlead.com
