Worldwide Enterprise WLAN Momentum Continues with Strong 17.1% Annualized Growth in 1Q22, According to IDC

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Enterprise WLAN market growth in first quarter of 2022 builds on 20.4% growth in 2021

NEEDHAM, Mass., June 7, 2022 – The enterprise segment of the worldwide wireless local area network (WLAN) market continued its strong growth in the first quarter of 2022 (1Q22) with revenues increasing 17.1% year over year to $1.95 billion, according to results published in the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Wireless LAN Tracker.

The 17.1% annualized growth builds on the enterprise WLAN market growing 20.4% in 2021 compared to 2020. Growth in the enterprise WLAN market continues to be driven by the latest Wi-Fi standard, known as Wi-Fi 6 or 802.11ax. Wi-Fi 6 access points made up 70.3% of the revenues in the Dependent Access Point (AP) segment and accounted for 59.3% of unit shipments within the segment. Wi-Fi 5 products, also known as 802.11ac, made up the remaining balance of Dependent AP sales.

The consumer segment of the WLAN market declined 3.6% in 1Q22 with the quarter's unit shipments declining 2.2% on an annualized basis. Adoption of Wi-Fi 6 continues in the consumer segment of the WLAN market too: In 1Q22, Wi-Fi 6 made up 31.4% of the market’s revenues, up from 28.2% in the fourth quarter of 2021.

"In the first quarter of 2022, enterprises around the globe continued to invest in WLAN technology as a key component of their network and digital transformations. Meanwhile, the Wi-Fi 6 standard continues to be a significant driver of growth in the enterprise WLAN market as enterprises deploy in the newest Wi-Fi technology," said Brandon Butler, research manager, Network Infrastructure at IDC. "After a rocky macroeconomic environment over the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the enterprise WLAN market continues to be resilient as organizations invest in wireless connectivity."

From a geographic perspective, the enterprise WLAN market grew across most regions of the world. Growth was particularly strong in Asia/Pacific, where the market in the People's Republic of China grew 55.6% year over year in 1Q22. In the broader Asia/Pacific region (excluding Japan and China) (APeJC), the market increased 22.3% in the first quarter; Japan's market declined 4.8% in 1Q22.

The enterprise WLAN market in the United States rose 8.8% year over year in 1Q22. Canada's market declined 2.5%, while the market in Latin America rose 27.6% in the quarter. In Western Europe the market grew 20.6% in 1Q22; in Central and Eastern Europe the market grew 2.1% in the quarter and in the Middle East & Africa, the enterprise WLAN market rose 19.5% year over year. At the country level, Germany was the largest market in Western Europe, making up 21.2% of the region's revenues. In Germany, the market grew 37.6% year over year in the first quarter, propelling growth for the broader Western European region.

Company Highlights

Cisco's enterprise WLAN revenues increased 9.4% in 1Q22 to $810.0 million, giving the company market share of 41.5%, compared to market share of 39.0% in the previous quarter, 4Q21.

HPE-Aruba revenues rose 30.7% year over year in 1Q22, giving the company market share of 16.5%, up from 12.7% in 4Q21.

Ubiquiti enterprise WLAN revenues declined 8.4% in 1Q22, giving the company 7.1% market share in the quarter.

Huawei enterprise WLAN revenues rose 71.5% year over year in 1Q22, giving the company 4.6% market share.

H3C revenues increased 58.8% in 1Q22, giving the company market share of 4.3%.

The IDC Worldwide Quarterly Wireless LAN Tracker provides total market size and vendor share data in an easy-to-use Excel Pivot Table format. The geographic coverage includes nine major regions (USA, Canada, Latin America, People's Republic of China, Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan & China), Japan, Western Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, and Middle East and Africa) and 60 countries. The WLAN market is further segmented by product class, product type, product, standard, and location. Measurement for the WLAN market is provided in vendor revenue, value, and unit shipments.

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About IDC

International Data Corporation (IDC) is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. With more than 1,200 analysts worldwide, IDC offers global, regional, and local expertise on technology, IT benchmarking and sourcing, and industry opportunities and trends in over 110 countries. IDC's analysis and insight helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment community to make fact-based technology decisions and to achieve their key business objectives. Founded in 1964, IDC is a wholly owned subsidiary of International Data Group (IDG), the world's leading tech media, data, and marketing services company. To learn more about IDC, please visit www.idc.com. Follow IDC on Twitter at @IDC and LinkedIn. Subscribe to the IDC Blog for industry news and insights.

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