Bluetooth Set for Prominent Role on Global Wireless Connectivity Stage
13:30 PM GMT on Aug 03, 2000
[M2 Communications]
anywhereyougo.com
Although Bluetooth - enabled products are not due to hit the streets until the end of this year, the market will start gathering momentum from 2001 onwards, which will be sustained by plummeting silicon prices and soaring demand for short-range radio connectivity.
Wide industry backing, spearheaded by the Bluetooth SIG, and augmenting investment are responsible for the bright future this industry is heading for.
The projected rise of this revolutionising technology and the immense market opportunity in wireless technology are crystallised by a new subscription service from Frost & Sullivan unveiled this week.
Frost & Sullivan believes that the anticipated ubiquity of Wireless LAN and Bluetooth-embedded systems will stimulate a giant leap in overall revenues from $92.3 million in 1999 to $53.12 billion in 2006.
Bluetooth is well-placed to leapfrog revenues generated in the Wireless LAN sector, dwindling from total market domination to 7.8 per cent of overall shipments during the same timescale.
Frost & Sullivan's research predicts wireless mania to hit the market in 2001, when Bluetooth-enabled devices start exploding onto the scene. Market dynamism will not only be fuelled by the rise in unit shipments but also by the increasingly apparent trend towards integration of wireless technologies into products. This development will trigger a shift away from low cost product add-ons such as PC cards to high cost systems such as notebook PCs.
According to Jan ten Sythoff, Wireless Programme Manager at Frost & Sullivan, participants in this increasingly crowded market are spreading their tentacles across Europe in a bid to cut themselves a slice of the booming Bluetooth market. Some consolidation will occur as companies come together to offer more complete product offerings and solutions.
Achieving interoperatibility and ensuring protection from interference count amongst the issues that may cause turmoil in the Bluetooth and Wireless LAN market. Savvy partnership strategies and alliances are being formed in an effort to provide the customer with a complete solution.
Jan ten Sythoff highlights that the value chain is still immature with many companies offering specific products or services, which only constitute a small part of a complete solution.
"It is interesting to compare the wireless LAN and Bluetooth value chains as they are similar technologies, albeit at different stages of the product lifecycle. Bluetooth has yet to be released onto the market, while wireless LAN is finally reaching its growth stage as it becomes a more mainstream technology," the author adds.
Frost & Sullivan believes that the value chain will develop and consolidate, producing two key areas. Silicon suppliers who can supply a complete integration and design-in services as well as software solutions will enjoy a strong position in the market. Those involved or associated with sub-assembly manufacturers - such as cellular baseband, motherboard or system on a chip manufacturers - will also gain a headstart against the competition.
Hardware systems manufacturers such as notebook PC and mobile phone handset vendors represent the second strong segment in the chain. These market contenders can offer complete solutions to their channel partners and customers, combining a range of products from other partners. The majority of add-ons are supplied at the time of sale of the system. On top of this, Frost & Sullivan expects Bluetooth integration into systems to be a rapid trend, rendering the opportunity for add-on manufacturers only short-lived.
Jan ten Sythoff concludes, "Short-range wireless connectivity products will find greater penetration earlier in some countries than others. It is clear that in the Nordic region the use of wireless technologies is much more widespread than anywhere else in Europe? and indeed the world. With the introduction of Bluetooth technology we expect this to continue, not least because Ericsson and Nokia are two of the major pioneers in this arena."
This first deliverable from Frost & Sullivan's new Bluetooth and Wireless LAN subscription service discusses the entire Bluetooth value chain, spanning from chip manufacturers to end-users, as well as providing a complete product market forecast. This section of the overall service also comprises an outline of the key industry trends and a discussion of issues impacting the industry, namely the positioning of short range wireless technologies as well as industry standards. |
