MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA--(Marketwire - December 16, 2010) - The Linley Group today released its latest report, "A Guide to Ethernet Switch and PHY Chips," which predicts the market for Ethernet silicon will exceed $2.8 billion this year, and expand to $3.4 billion by 2014. The analyst firm expects the 10 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) market to experience a more than 42 percent compound annual growth rate through 2014, with the rapid deployment of 10GbE servers and aggregation switches in the data center. While Gigabit Ethernet switch port shipments are expected to double through 2014, declining ASPs will drive a moderate rise in revenue from $1.1 billion in 2010 to $1.35 billion in 2014.
"We believe the Gigabit Ethernet market has matured and the 10GbE market has begun to ramp aggressively, driven primarily by the need to expand and aggregate resources in the data center," said Jag Bolaria, Linley Group analyst and coauthor of the report. "Technology transitions tend to create increased competition among vendors and large shifts in vendor share, and the 10GbE market is no different. Successful vendors will be those that not only increase ports counts, but also manage power dissipation and deliver integrated solutions supporting converged switching."
This report from the Linley Group analyzes technology trends and vendor offerings in five key segments: GE switch chips, 10GbE switch chips, Carrier-Ethernet switches, 10GbE PHYs for copper and optical media and 10GbE (KR) backplane transceivers. The report provides head-to-head product comparisons, and offers opinions on which product solutions have the most potential to succeed.
Data Center and WAN Markets Drive Ethernet IC Development
Power and energy-efficient design remain key concerns for server designers and data center owners, making chip power dissipation a top priority. In addition, the convergence of communication and storage networks has given rise to switch systems that support Ethernet, Fibre Channel and Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE). This represents a tremendous opportunity for the first silicon vendor to develop chips that integrate all of these switch technologies.
Ethernet is also expected to see growing adoption in the access and metro markets, as service providers migrate from circuit switched technologies to Carrier Ethernet, a packet switched technology. Carrier Ethernet technologies can be applied to mobile backhaul, to broadband access, aggregation, and transport systems, however, these systems have varying market requirements. Both established and new players have solutions to address different segments of this expanding market.
Availability
"A Guide to Ethernet Switch and PHY Chips, Seventh Edition" is currently available directly from The Linley Group. For further details, including pricing and a list of included tables, visit the web site at http://www.linleygroup.com/Reports/gigabit_guide.html.
About The Linley Group
The Linley Group is the industry's leading source for independent technology analysis of semiconductors for networking, communications, mobile, and wireless applications. The company provides strategic consulting services, in-depth analytical reports, and Linley Tech events focused on advanced technology topics. The Linley Group is also the publisher of Microprocessor Report, the leading technical publication for unbiased analysis of high-performance processor technology. For insights on recent industry news, subscribe to the company's free email newsletters: "Linley Wire," "Linley on Mobile," and "Processor Watch" and follow us on Twitter @linleygroup.
Note to editors: To speak to an analyst from The Linley Group about this report, please contact: Erika Powelson, Orr & Company, 831.424.1811 or email erika@orr-co.com.
Contact Information:
For additional information, please contact:
Company Contact:
Candace Doyle
The Linley Group
408-370-7631
candaced@linleygroup.com
Public Relations Contact:
Erika Powelson
Orr & Company
831-424-1811
erika@orr-co.com