Broadband consumer premises electronic (CPE) device shipments – including modems, wired routers and gateways – will continue to increase, reaching 149.4 million units in 2013 from 144.9 million in 2012, a 3.1% year-over-year gain, according to a new forecast from ABI Research. Ongoing growth in broadband adoption and existing broadband subscribers upgrading to better quality services will fuel the rise, ABI says in its latest “Broadband CPE: Cable, DSL, Fiber” market data report.
DSL and cable CPE shipments are not likely to decline in the near future despite recent years’ gains in fiber optic CPE device shipments, according to an ABI press release. DSL operators are switching from ADSL to VDSL while cable operators are shifting to DOCSIS 3.0, ABI analysts point out.
“Since these advanced technologies allow DSL and cable operators to compete with fiber optic broadband operators in terms of price and service quality, VDSL and DOCSIS 3.0 CPE device shipments have grown year-over-year,” industry analyst Khin Sandi Lynn commented.
DOCSIS 3.0 CPE shipments surged in 2012: 37 million DOCSIS 3.0 devices were shipped representing 67% of cable CPE shipments and a 65% year-over-year increase, ABI notes. That trend will continue this year, with DOCSIS 3.0 CPE device shipments accounting for 83% of cable CPE shipments, the market research firm forecasts.
China’s ZTE (14%) and Huawei (8%) hold first and second position respectively when it comes to manufacturer market share in the worldwide market for broadband CPE devices. They’re also the top two vendors of FTTH (Fiber to the Home) CPE devices, with 40% and 38% market shares, respectively, of fiber CPE devices, shipments of which totaled 30.7 million in 2012, according to ABI.
