According to ABI Research, the worldwide small cell backhaul equipment market is expected to be worth $4 billion in 2020. With high demand for backhaul equipment, the North American, European, and Asia-Pacific regions are expected to outperform the total market for backhaul equipment with double-digit growth between 2015 and 2020.
The research firm states that millimetre wave technology is the fastest growing technology, outpacing the overall backhaul equipment market through 2020. Further, the sub 6GHz technology will capture the largest share of small cell backhaul last mile links, outperforming the total market by 2020. Meanwhile, traditional microwave equipment will continue to be the most preferred technology for small cell backhaul applications commanding largest revenue share and one-fourth share of links in 2020.
Going forward, 4G/long term evolution ( LTE) small cell solutions will be the key growth driver for microwave, millimetre wave, and sub 6 GHz equipment market. The demand for 4G/LTE small cells backhaul is expected to grow at double-digit rates and surpass demand for 3G backhaul in 2015.
