Router and swtich revenue up 13%

During Q4 2003, worldwide revenue from routers and switches sold to telephone companies and Internet service providers totaled $1.4 bln, up 13% YTY and up 13% QTQ. For the full year, global revenue for such gear totaled $4.8 bln, a fall of 9% from the previous year, which had itself been marked by weak sales. During 2003, sales of legacy switches continued to slide, giving way to service provider spending on gear built around technologies such as Internet Protocol and multiprotocol label switching. Router revenue edged up 2%, while revenue for multiservice switches fell 23%. The market is expected to grow at a 16% compound annual growth rate through 2007, reaching revenue of $8.6 bln. Market growth year over year is expected to begin again this year.