Market Watch, March 1999
International fiber optics use on the rise
Annapolis Fiber Optics International (AFOI), a Maryland-based telecommunications market research and consulting firm, has released four new reports on international fiber-optic telecommunications.
Each report covers a specific geographical region: Asia/Pacific Rim,
Africa/Middle East, Latin America, and Europe. AFOI cites the growing popularity of the Internet, which is doubling every 100 days, as a major challenge faced by the industry. Other significant contributors to fiber's popularity and challenges to a growing industry include combining voice and data, fiber-to-the-home technology, and the introduction of dense wavelength-division multiplexing (DWDM).
Until recently, the United States was the only country to actively
deploy DWDM. Now, the technology can be seen in Japan, China, Korea, the United Kingdom, Finland, Norway, France, Italy, and many other areas around the globe. According to AFOI, more than 150 million km of fiber, mainly singlemode, will be installed by 2000.
Major breakthroughs leading to all-optical networks, terabit speeds,
and multiplexing signal a bright future for fiber. It all boils down to a multitude of decisions for today's carriers. They need to know what type of network they want 5 to 10 years down the line, how to fund these networks, and which new technologies best fit the needs of their customers.
Predictions are for SONET/SDH and DWDM markets to grow from a combined total of more than $12 billion in 1998 to $28.9 billion in 2003.
According to AFOI, the Asia/Pacific Rim will experience the most growth, with China leading the pack.
Other exciting regions deploying fiber include South Africa and the surrounding countries. Another country to watch is India, as deregulation and liberalization begin to take shape. India, with its population of 950 million and telephone density of under 5%, will demand the most sophisticated fiber-optic networks.
AFOI plans to publish four additional reports in 1999 that will cover
North American fiber-optic telecommunications, undersea fiber networks, moving toward the all-optical network, and splicers and splicing techniques.
The four regional reports are available from AFOI at a cost of $1195
each or $4500 for the set. For more information or to purchase the
reports, contact Katie Moose at (410) 280-5272, fax (410) 263-5380, or e-mail: kaholmes@erols.com. |
