London, UK (May 6, 2015)—Technology market research firm Infonetics Research, now part of IHS Inc. (NYSE: IHS), today reported that operator spending, particularly by large tier-1s such as China Mobile, drove global carrier WiFi equipment revenue to US$336 million in the second half of 2014, up 23 percent over the first half of 2014. Infonetics expects a big annual jump—88 percent—in the carrier WiFi market in 2015. 

“Several strong growth factors are feeding the rapid acceleration of the carrier WiFi market. In addition to the demand for offload and broadband enhancement, there are technology innovations such as 802.11ac and Hotspot 2.0, and service opportunities like data analytics, location-based services and WiFi roaming that are driving deployment,” said Richard Webb, research director for mobile backhaul and small cells at Infonetics Research, now part of IHS.

“The market will get another push from mobile operators deploying small cells with integrated WiFi over the coming few years,” Webb said. 

Infonetics’ Carrier WiFi Equipment market share, size and forecast report tracks WiFi equipment deployed by operators in public spaces for wireless internet access. 

CARRIER WIFI MARKET HIGHLIGHTS

• For the full year 2014, the global carrier WiFi equipment market grew 16 percent
• Access points made up the bulk of carrier WiFi revenue in 2014, while WiFi controllers accounted for 22 percent of sales
• 802.11ac access points contributed 17 percent to 2H14 WiFi access point revenue and are expected to drive hotspot upgrade expenditures through at least 2019
• SIM-based WiFi access points have rapidly overtaken WiFi hotspot access points as the highest volume segment
• The carrier WiFi market share leaders for 2014 are, in alphabetical order, Cisco, Huawei and Ruckus

CARRIER WIFI REPORT SYNOPSIS

Infonetics’ biannual carrier WiFi equipment report provides worldwide and regional market size, vendor market share, forecasts through 2019, analysis and trends for WiFi hotspot controllers and carrier WiFi access points (WiFi hotspot APs, SIM-based WiFi APs, dual-mode 3G/WiFi picocells and metrocells, and dual-mode 4G/LTE/WiFi mini eNodeBs). The report includes carrier WiFi vendor announcements and customer wins and a Mobile Operator WiFi Offload Strategies Tracker. Vendors tracked: Alcatel-Lucent, Aruba Networks, Cisco, Edgewater Wireless, Ericsson, HP, Huawei, Motorola Solutions, Nokia Networks, Ruckus Wireless, others. To purchase the report, contact Infonetics:www.infonetics.com/contact.asp.

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About Infonetics Research (www.infonetics.com)

Infonetics Research, now part of IHS (NYSE: IHS), is an international market research and consulting firm serving the communications industry since 1990. A leader in defining and tracking emerging and established technologies in all world regions, Infonetics helps clients plan, strategize and compete more effectively. Follow Infonetics on Twitter for the latest headlines: http://twitter.com/infonetics.