Cable broadband CPE device revenue grew 26% in 2012, estimates Infonetics

Infonetics Research says despite global broadband CPE revenue declining 3% sequentially in 4Q12, 2012 was a standout year for broadband CPE devices, with revenue increasing 13%, to $7.7 billion “Broadband CPE enjoyed its strongest year yet in 2012, benefiting from a combination of ongoing technology shifts and the need to support legacy broadband services and subscribers,” notes Jeff Heynen, directing analyst for broadband access and pay TV at Infonetics Research. “Cable operators are gaining significant traction with DOCSIS 3.0 in North America, Europe, Korea, and Japan, and they’re in the early stages of rolling out video gateways that combine DOCSIS CPE with video transcoding capabilities. These gateways allow cable companies to deliver a whole-home, multi-screen service to customers, and we anticipate hearty growth for the devices over the next few years.” Heynen adds: “WiFi-enabled CPE is really heating up. In 2012, nearly half of all DSL units sold were WiFi enabled, and we’re forecasting this to swell to 74% by 2017. The growth of WiFi-enabled CPE is proof positive that service providers are quickly moving to more integrated devices to control the user experience in the home.” Other findings released by Infonetics includes: The strongest growth came from the cable CPE segment, where revenue grew 26% year-over-year DSL CPE shipments were down 4% in 2012, though...