Fiber Optic Connectors Market Forecast 2016 – 2024

Fiber optic connectors are required in every application area where optical fibers are used for the transmission of signals. Fiber optic connectors are used in public telecommunications network, outside plant applications, and in wiring installations at customer premises.
An increase in the demand for high bandwidth in telecommunication networks is primarily driving the global market. Telecom vendors have gradually ventured into optical networking, which is inherently capable of carrying a higher bandwidth capacity than the existing infrastructure. Moreover, the application of fiber optic connectors in the medical, aerospace, and military sectors is set to bolster the global fiber optic connectors market. Governments of several developing countries, such as China, India, and Brazil, are investing in the deployment of fiber optic connectors in order to improve the network infrastructure, which in turn, is anticipated to further increase the demand for optical interconnects.
The global fiber optic connectors market was valued at US$2.9 bn in 2015 and is estimated to expand at a CAGR of 7.7% to reach US$5.6 bn by 2024.

Soaring Application of Fiber Optic Connectors in Telecom Sector
The global fiber optic connectors market, by type, is segmented into lucent connector (LC), standard connector (SC), multiple-fiber push-on/pull-off (MPO/MTP), straight tip (ST), MXC, and others. In terms of revenue, lucent connectors were the leading contributors to the global market in 2015, followed by standard connectors. The market for LC is expected to show substantial growth during the forecast period. However, the telecommunication industry is steadily switching to a new type of fiber optic connector – MXC connectors – owing to their higher count of multi fiber position options, compact size, lower cost, less weight, stronger resistance to debris sensitivity, no need for fiber polishing, and higher performance capacity. Thus, MXC connectors are expected to record significant growth through 2024.
On the basis of applications, the global fiber optic connectors market is categorized into telecom, datacom, dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) systems, lasers, and others such as military, medicine, and cable TV. The telecom industry held the dominant share in 2015 owing to the importance of fiber optic connectors as the preferred medium for the transmission of data in telecommunications networks. The increasing demand for greater telecom capacity and faster internet services has resulted in the extensive use of optical fiber connectors in telecom networks.

Growth of Data Centers in APAC Driving Demand for Fiber Optic Connectors
North America is projected to be the leading regional market for fiber optic connectors during the forecast period, primarily owing to the rapid penetration of multi fiber connectors in data centers. Applications such as cloud computing, video, virtualization, switching/routing, and convergence are driving the need for bandwidth expansion in data centers and 4G/LTE networks. In North America, the U.S. is set to represent the domain share in the fiber optic connectors market. Hardened fiber optic connectors (HFOCs) are passive telecommunication components that are used widely in the U.S. to withstand climatic conditions such as snow, high winds, ice storms, and sleet.
Asia Pacific held a prominent share in the global fiber optic connectors market in 2015 and is anticipated to expand significantly from 2016 to 2024. Developing countries such as China and India have witnessed tremendous economic growth in the recent years, driven by rapid development in sectors such as telecommunication and IT, among others. This, in turn, fuels the growth of data centers in the region, thereby resulting in the increased demand for fiber optic connectors.
3M, Alcatel-Lucent SA, Amphenol Corporation, Arris Group Inc., Hirose Electric Co. Ltd., TE Connectivity Ltd., Furukawa Electric Co. Ltd., Hitachi Ltd., ZTE Corporation, Corning Cable Systems LLC, Sterlite Optical Technologies Limited, Broadcom Limited, Ratioplast Electronics, Diamond SA, and Sumitomo Electric Industries are some of the leading player in the global fiber optic connectors market.