Ericsson is leading the microwave network equipment market with 21.6 percent revenue share in the second quarter of 2018.
Huawei with 18.6 percent, Nokia with 12.5 percent, NEC with 10.6 percent, Ceragon with 8.5 percent, Aviat Networks with 4.2 percent, SIAE with 4 percent and ZTE with 3.8 percent are the other microwave network equipment vendors.

The microwave network equipment market fell 5 percent quarter over quarter – and 1 percent year over year – in Q2 2018 to $1.03 billion.

Revenue in the second quarter was comprised of 80 percent backhaul, 7 percent transport and 13 percent access. Also within revenue, 16 percent was dual Ethernet/TDM, 71 percent was Ethernet only, 2 percent was V-band millimeter wave and 11 percent was E-band millimeter wave.

10 percent of revenue in the second quarter came from North America, 39 percent from Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), 37 percent from Asia Pacific, and 13 percent from Caribbean and Latin America (CALA).

“Microwave equipment market declines in the second quarter of 2018 followed a stronger-than-expected first quarter, with second half of the year expected to be flat-to-slightly up,” By Richard Webb, associate director of research and analysis, service provider technology, IHS Markit, said.

Mobile operators are typically cash conservative, and many operators in developed markets have undergone most of their backhaul upgrades for LTE. Though upgrades for LTE-A and LTE-Pro and late-phase LTE deployment in developing regions prop up the market, the early shoots of growth driven by 5G are now visible and will gain momentum over the next two to three years.

The microwave equipment market will get an injection from 5G upgrades, driven by demand for higher-capacity backhaul combined with growing traction for outdoor small cell deployments.