LONDON-A new study from Frost & Sullivan predicts the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz-based systems markets, currently valued at around $946 million, will boom into a $4.76 billion business during the next four years.
The research firm said the arrival of the 802.11b standard, which operates in the 2.4 GHz frequency, signalled a new lease on life for wireless local area network products. WLAN is being used by enterprises to extend the fixed wire local area networks and provide increased mobility to the workforce.
The first standardized 5 GHz products and the increasing miniaturization of 5 GHz silicon technology leads Frost & Sullivan to be upbeat about growth prospects in the 5 GHz sector. Plummeting equipment costs, lower power consumption and wider availability of products also will help the market to gradually become more established and eventually enter the mainstream, the firm said. Enterprise applications and integration with third-generation technologies will be significant drivers.
Frost & Sullivan said it was less optimistic, however, in its forecast for other frequency-hopping products such as HomeRF, but Bluetooth product shipments are expected to increase from its current level of 11 million units to 600 million units by 2005.
“The battle over which standards and regulations will dominate the flourishing wireless arena continues to impact deployment speeds,” said Jan ten Sythoff, program manager at Frost & Sullivan. “There are different regulations governing 5 GHz technology in different parts of the world and consequently, inconsistent standards have been introduced to accommodate these rules. The lack of standardization will continue to inhibit growth in the 5 GHz space.”
Revenue growth in the 802.11b sector is forecasted to be negative in 2005, as volume growth slows and price erosion continues. The 5 GHz camp will be particularly prominent in exerting price pressure, prompted by rising equipment volume. Growth in the 5 GHz market will go from $0.01 billion to $4.75 billion in 2005, Frost & Sullivan said.
An additional revenue stream could come from the integration of WLAN technology with 3G infrastructure.
