Infonetics: Telecom Operators Stepping up Equipment Spending in 2013, Led by Asia; Growth Returns to Europe

CAMPBELL, Calif. -- (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Market research firm Infonetics Research released excerpts from its Service Provider Capex, Revenue, and Capex by Equipment Type report, which tracks telecom operator revenue and capital expenditures (capex) by operator type, region, and equipment segment and provides insight into telecom spending trends.

ANALYST NOTE

“With 3 quarters of the data in and a careful review of carrier investment plans for each major world region, overall telecom service provider capex is on track to be up close to 4% this year led by Asia and North America, and 2013 is looking bright for all regions,” says Stéphane Téral, principal analyst for mobile infrastructure and carrier economics at Infonetics Research.

Téral adds: “With investment plans out from AT&T and Deutsche Telekom, combined with the plans of a long list of major and smaller operators around the globe, we can safely say that 2013 and 2014 will be positive capex years, which is good news for vendors. Deutsche Telekom’s €30-billion 3-year investment plan announced this month will help lead a return to investments in the EMEA region. Despite the gloomy macroeconomic conditions in many places, especially Europe, service providers have no choice but to invest in their networks now; some have been restricting capex for so many years that they are experiencing network outages, unable to handle the exploding traffic. There is very high demand for telecom services everywhere, particularly for mobile broadband."

CAPEX REPORT HIGHLIGHTS

• Telecom capex increases in 2012 are being driven primarily by video and wireless infrastructure investments
• Global service provider revenue is on track to reach US$1.9 trillion in 2012, up 4% from 2011
• While incumbent carrier capex on the whole is flat to slightly down this year, independent wireless operators, competitive operators, and cable operators are increasing capex, led by the independent wireless operators, increasing capex 12% this year
• Spending on every type of telecom equipment except optical and TDM voice will be up this year
• The major areas of investment through 2015 include fiber-based wireline broadband, 2G mobile network capacity expansion, 2G migration to 3G, and migration to LTE projects
• Asia Pacific will account for about 1/3 of global service provider revenue by 2016, propelled by China Mobile, the world’s largest mobile operator by revenue and subscribers
• Wireless pure-play operators will account for nearly 1/3 of all telecom capex by 2016, driven by 3G and LTE rollouts in China, India, and Africa

CAPEX REPORT SYNOPSIS

Infonetics’ biannual service provider capex report provides worldwide and regional market size, forecasts, analysis, and trends for revenue and capex by service provider type (incumbent, competitive, cable, independent wireless), and capex by equipment type (CPE, non-telecom/datacom, and network infrastructure, including broadband aggregation, wireless, IP routers and carrier Ethernet switches, optical, IP voice, TDM voice, video, and other). To buy the report, contact Infonetics: http://www.infonetics.com/contact.asp.

REPORT HIGHLIGHTS

• Infonetics Overall Market Trends and Forecasts research brief: http://bit.ly/ZgRAGW
• Telecom growth rate still outpacing GDP growth
• Mobile operators feeling pressure from OTT and free services
• LTE jumps 30% in Q3, NSN doubles LTE revenue; mobile gear set for growth in 2013
• Operators are deploying SON in LTE and 3G networks alike; name top vendors
• 3G drives femtocell market up 13% in 3Q12; Samsung #1 in revenue and shipments
• Outdoor small cell backhaul a 5-year $5 billion opportunity
• Japan’s mobile market grows 3-fold on the wings of LTE, China puts 3G first
• A first: Increased ARPU now a top driver for LTE upgrades
• Small cell is the buzz but DAS is the biz, say operators in latest Infonetics survey
• Telcos on track to spend $75B per year on outsourced services by 2016; Huawei edges up

RECENT / UPCOMING RESEARCH

Download Infonetics’ market research brochure, events brochure, publication calendar, report highlights, tables of contents and more at http://www.infonetics.com/login.

• Telecommunications Equipment Vendor Leadership Scorecard (Dec. 18)
• 3G and 4G (LTE, WiMAX) Broadband Devices and Subscribers Market Report (Dec. 18)
• Service Provider Capex, Opex, Revenue, and Subscribers Database (Dec. 19)
• Multi-Screen TV Service Deployment Strategies: Global Service Provider Survey (Dec. 21)
• Ethernet over Coax (EoC) Equipment and Subscribers in China (Dec. 21)

TO BUY REPORTS AND SURVEYS, CONTACT SALES:

N. America (West), Asia, Latin America: Larry Howard, larry@infonetics.com, +1 408-583-3335

N. America (East), Texas, Midwest: Scott Coyne, scott@infonetics.com, +1 408-583-3395

Europe, Middle East, Africa: George Stojsavljevic, george@infonetics.com, +44-755-488-1623

Japan, South Korea, China, Taiwan: http://www.infonetics.com/contact.asp

ABOUT INFONETICS

Infonetics Research (www.infonetics.com) 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 effectively. View Infonetics’ About Us slides at http://bit.ly/QUrbrV.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/multimedia/home/20121220006262/en/