Japan Networks Market Shares, 2022: The Markets Moving Toward "Post Supply Chain Constraints"

This IDC Market Shares study provides an analysis of the 2022 vendor shares and vendor trends in the overall Japan network equipment market by product segment, which includes Ethernet switches, routers, and enterprise wireless LAN equipment, and by user segment. In 2022, the Japan network equipment market posted positive growth in all segments for Ethernet switches, routers, and enterprise wireless LANs, reversing the image of the Japan network equipment market as a mature market. Although most of the top vendors outperformed the previous year's revenue, vendors that were able to demonstrate successful procurement and product supply strategies and standout features under supply chain constraints achieved significant business growth.As the disruption caused by supply chain constraints, typified by the semiconductor shortage, is finally coming to an end, it is important to take advantage of the lessons learned and adapt to the new stage of competition. For example, the trend to incorporate AI/ML into network devices and network operation and management has been developing for several years. "However, the environment surrounding AI is changing rapidly, and the rapid evolution of generative AI (GenAI) should be actively incorporated in the network domain. For example, failure response support that provides highly accurate solutions to network failures through natural language dialogue and support for network equipment configuration creation would be highly effective applications. Continued evolution of AI applications for network devices, services, and software following AI evolution will lead to true AI for IT operations (AIOps) and AI applications that contribute to users," says Kenichi Kusano, group director at IDC Japan.