Broadband Access Equipment Expected to Peak in 2028

According to a report by Dell'Oro Group, it is predicted that the Broadband Access Equipment market is forecasted to grow 0.8% on average for the next five years (2024-2029), with total revenue expected to peak in 2028, as cable operators and fiber ISPs complete major DOCSIS 4.0 and rural broadband expansion projects.

"Quietly, broadband access networks are evolving into large-scale edge compute platforms, with the ability to enable service convergence far more quickly and easily than ever before," said Jeff Heynen, Vice President at Dell'Oro Group. "This evolution means that the revenue mix for broadband equipment is shifting over the next five years, with spending on traditional hardware and software now being supplemented by spending on AI and machine learning tools to facilitate convergence and service reliability," added Heynen.

Additional highlights from the report:

• PON equipment revenue is expected to grow from $10.5 B in 2024 to $12.1 B in 2029, driven largely by XGS-PON deployments in North America, EMEA, and CALA, as well as FTTR (Fiber-to-the-Room) and 50 Gbps deployments in China.
• Revenue for Cable Distributed Access Equipment (Virtual CCAP, Remote PHY Devices, Remote MACPHY Devices, and Remote OLTs) is expected to peak at $1.3 B in 2028, as operators continue their DOCSIS 4.0 and early fiber deployments.
• Revenue for Fixed Wireless CPE is expected to peak in 2025 and 2026, dominated by shipments of 5G sub-6 GHz and a growing number of 5G millimeter wave units.
• Revenue for Wi-Fi 7 residential routers and broadband CPE with WLAN will reach $8.9 B by 2029, as the technology is rapidly adopted by consumers and service providers alike.