“The first half of 2024 saw continued inventory corrections from 2023, while the second half of the year saw a return to more consistent, predictable purchasing,” said Jeff Heynen, Vice President with Dell’Oro Group.

“It is not easy to put a positive spin on the fact that the RAN market just recorded the steepest full-year decline in more than 20 years,” said Stefan Pongratz, Vice President for RAN market research at the Dell’Oro Group.

“Emerging markets are important for the microwave transmission industry. It is often these parts of the world where laying fiber is not always the first choice, rather it is the second to wireless technologies such as point-to-point microwave,” stated Jimmy Yu, Vice President at Dell’Oro Group.

“There is light at the end of this tunnel. The Optical Transport equipment market entered a period of revenue contraction in late 2023 and looks to be exiting it in early 2025. The strong fourth quarter growth rate in 2024 is a great indication that supply and demand for Optical Transport equipment is near equilibrium, meaning the equipment glut is over,” said Jimmy Yu, Vice President at Dell’Oro Group.