An active optical cable (AOC) is a cabling technology that uses optical fiber between the connectors to improve the cable's performance. There is a rise in demand for AOC as it serves as an alternative to copper cable due to its various advantages such as small bend radius for easy installment, low power consumption, and lightweight. Applications of these cables have expanded, from high-performance computers to networking and storage with the support of many protocols. In addition, AOCs rely on different protocols, such as InfiniBand, USB, and Ethernet, for data transmission. The active optical cable market was valued at $481.3 million in 2015. Furthermore, the active optical cable market is projected to generate about $3,480.7 million registering a CAGR of 32.7% from 2016 to 2022. Certain segments such as PCI Express(PCIe), Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) and Thunderbolt are increasing the market size and generating potential customers for the sector worldwide.

Major factors supplementing the growth of the market are increasing bandwidth requirements and huge data center deployments, in addition to rising adoption of virtualization and cloud-based services. On the other hand, major challenges faced by the industry include high implementation cost of AOCs and their vulnerability to physical damage and transmission losses. Improved connectivity in emerging countries is expected to create greater opportunities for growth in the future.

The active optical cable market is segmented on the basis of protocol, connector, application, and geography. The protocol segment is further categorized into InfiniBand, Ethernet, HDMI, DisplayPort, USB, and others (Thunderbolt and PCI Express). Currently, the InfiniBand segment holds significant share in the overall market, owing to its increasing usage in commercial applications such as data centers and high-performance computing. The connector segment is divided into QSFP, CXP, CDFP, CFP, SFP, and others (CX4 and mixed connectors). Among the connector segment, QSFP and CXP accounted for the maximum share in 2015. The application segment includes data center, high-performance computing, personal computer, digital signage, consumer electronics, and others (transport, telecom cable, medical, airport, aircrafts, and ships). In the year 2015, data center contributed the highest revenue share, accounting for around 50% of the overall market revenue.

Based on geography, the market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and LAMEA. North America is bifurcated into U.S., Mexico, and Canada, whereas Europe into UK, Russia, Germany, The Netherlands, France, and rest of Europe. The countries covered under Asia-Pacific are China, India, Japan, Australia, Singapore, and rest of Asia-Pacific, while LAMEA includes Latin America, Middle East, and Africa. In addition, the report covers country-wise cross-sectional analysis of the protocol, connector, and application segments.

Major companies profiled in the report include Finisar Corporation, Seimon, Avago technologies, Viavi Solutions Inc., Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd., IBM Corporation, 3M, Fujitsu, Amphenol Corporation, and Oclaro, Inc.

POTENTIAL BENEFITS FOR STAKEHOLDERS

Comprehensive analysis of the world active optical cable market is provided.
The report provides a competitive scenario of the market with current trends, future estimations, structure, driving factors, scope, opportunities, and challenges.
The report includes a detailed analysis of the market segments to provide insights on the market dynamics.
Porter's Five Forces analysis highlights the potential of buyers and suppliers as well as provides insights on the competitive structure of the market to devise effective growth strategies and facilitate better decision-making.
Value chain analysis provides key inputs on the role of stakeholders involved at various stages.
SWOT analysis of the key players highlights their strengths and weaknesses along with potential opportunities.

ACTIVE OPTICAL CABLE MARKET SEGMENTATION

The market is segmented on the basis of protocol, connector, application, and geography.

BY PROTOCOL

InfiniBand
Ethernet
HDMI
DisplayPort
USB
Others (Thunderbolt and PCI Express)

BY CONNECTOR

QSFP
CXP
CDFP
CFP
SFP
Others (CX4 and Mixed Connectors)

BY APPLICATION

Data Center
High-Performance Computing
Personal Computer
Digital Signage
Consumer Electronics
Others (Transport, Telecom Cable, Medical, Airport, Aircrafts, and Ships)

BY GEOGRAPHY

North America
U.S.
Mexico
Canada
Europe
UK
Germany
Russia
Netherlands
France
Rest of Europe
Asia-Pacific
China
India
Japan
Australia
Singapore
Rest of Asia-Pacific
LAMEA
Latin America
Middle East
Africa

KEY PLAYERS

Finisar Corporation
Seimon
Avago Technologies
Viavi Solutions Inc.
Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
IBM Corporation
3M
Fujitsu
Amphenol Corporation
Oclaro, Inc.