According to market research and consulting firm Venture Development Corp. (VDC), Power-over-Ethernet (PoE) technology is fast becoming a standard feature in a variety of products ranging from wireless access points to RFID tag readers. In these devices, it is the semiconductor silicon (PoE-enabling ICs) that enables the transmission or acceptance of power over the Ethernet cable.
VDC's report, "Power Over Ethernet: A Global Market Demand Analysis," has quantified the PoE ASIC market in terms of the number of chips that are needed to support PoE functions on both ends of the cable. PoE ASICs are essentially hot-swap controllers with additional circuitry to perform the PSE (power sourcing equipment) and PD (powered devices) operations defined by the IEEE 802.3af standard, which was ratified last June. Thus, the shipments of PoE-enabling ICs are forecast to grow at a 55% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) through 2007. This growth is based on the proliferation of ports supporting PoE technology. The reports shows that ports supporting PoE will grow from 133.2 million this year to 495.8 million ports by 2007. (IC data in this report is normalized by port support. For example, a PowerDsine PD64012 may support up to 12 ports on the PSE, where as TI TPS2370 may only support one port on a PD.).
Furthermore, the VDC study cautions semiconductor manufacturers on price erosion. The report predicts price erosion between 2004 and 2007. The average selling price per unit is expected to drop from more than $1 per unit to less than 50 cents per unit. In short, this study provides estimates, forecasts and analysis of the current and emerging PoE markets including shipments of PoE ASICs, PoE-enabled power sourcing equipment and powered devices. Among the key features of this report include PoE-enabled device unit and port unit estimates and forecasts, detailed profiles of key PoE industry participants; and comprehensive framework for analyzing likely next-generation PoE-enabled devices.
For more information, visit www.vdc-corp.com/power/press/04/pr04-32.html.
