Small Cells Surge at 43% Compound Annual Growth Rate as Mobile Network Operators Densify Networks

Austin, Texas - 23 Nov 2015

In its latest forecast for Outdoor Small Cells, ABI Research , a leader in technology intelligence, upholds its expectations that 2015 marks the start of meaningful deployments, with the market to deliver a healthy 43 percent Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) throughout the forecast period.

Read ABI Research’s Outdoor Small Cell Forecast report.

“Many mobile network operators around the world, including Verizon, Sprint, China Mobile and Vodafone, among others, are now investing in network densification,” says Nick Marshall, Research Director at ABI Research. “The results of this can be seen in the ramp of small cells this year. As many networks shift from coverage-centric to capacity-focused, MNOs are finding that small cells are an effective way to boost network capacity in high traffic areas.”

In 2015, the challenges of backhaul, power, permitting and siting, which previously stalled small cell rollout, are being overcome with Small Cells as a Service (SCaaS) from vendors and infrastructure owners, including Alcatel-Lucent, American Tower, Crown Castle, Ericsson, Nokia Networks and Towerstream. Several of these companies are reporting in earnings calls that small cell-related revenue is growing strongly quarter-on-quarter.

Additionally, 2015 marks 4G small cells as the fastest growing small cell type in the market driven by venue and dense urban deployments. ABI Research forecasts the number of LTE small cells to double in 2015 and by a similar factor each subsequent year. In 2020, the value of LTE small cells will represent more than 85 percent of the small cell equipment market.

The Asia-Pacific region, given its large size and 4G deployments in South Korea and Japan, as well as the start of commercial TD-LTE operations in China and India, will grow to represent almost 50 percent of the worldwide small cell equipment market by 2017.

These findings are part of ABI Research’s Small Cells & HetNets Research Service, which includes research reports, market data, insights and competitive assessments.