The year 2012 was a bleak period for the cable broadband equipment and subscribers market during which CMTS and edge QAM revenue decreased 15 percent, to $1.39 billion. However, according to excerpts from Infonetics (News - Alert) Research report, the market seems to have turned the corner, setting the stage for strong growth in 2013.

Infonetics Research (News - Alert) forecast that CMTS and edge QAM revenue will grow more than 20 percent in 2013.

Justifying this, Jeff Heynen, directing analyst for broadband access and pay TV at Infonetics Research, observed that bandwidth hungry applications would be the triggers for the growth of CMTS and edge QAM channel throughout 2013. Also increased demand from cable operators for DOCSIS 3.0 hardware and multiscreen services will drive the increased revenue.

According to the report, the year 2012 wasn’t entirely cheerless. Even a lackluster performance in the fourth quarter, which saw the global CMTS and edge QAM market decline by one percent because of a decrease in ASPs and channel shipments, couldn’t quell the buoyancy of the North American market.

Contrary to its counterparts in other parts of the globe, North America struck a chord of optimism as it notched a seven percent increase in CMTS and edge QAM revenue in 4Q12 from 3Q12,

In addition, there were other factors that brought a little bit of color into an otherwise dull picture. Cisco (News - Alert) tightened its grip, refusing to relinquish its number one position in the CMTS revenue market in the 4Q12. It also nudged past Harmonic to claim top spot in the edge QAM market for the first time in 4Q12, at least temporarily. At the close of 2012, Harmonic (News - Alert) once again assumed its rightful place at the top of edge QAM.

For the purpose of the current quarterly report, Infonetics tracked and analyzed the trends for the CMTS and edge QAM equipment and cable broadband subscribers across many major companies.