The network device market is becoming increasingly fragmented and competitive, says a new report from Auvik Networks.
The 2020 Network Vendor Diversity report reveals increasing competition in the network access point, switch, router, and firewall hardware markets. The number of network device vendors represented in the data grew to 368, with 14 new switch vendors, 13 new router vendors, and 2 new firewall vendors being accounted for.
- The top 10 most commonly deployed vendors across all device categories—Cisco, Meraki, Ubiquiti, HP, Aruba, Ruckus, SonicWall, Dell, NETGEAR, and Fortinet—claim around 80% of devices across all networks.
- The most competitive network device category is switches, with 138 vendors. The top nine switch vendors compete for 93.4% of the category share.
- Nearly two-thirds of all managed service providers (MSPs) are managing more than five network device vendors, but 90% of networks of all sizes have only one to three device vendors deployed on them.
The report also highlights the influence of a number of evolving industry trends.
- SD-WAN (software-defined wide area network) technology and virtual machines are continuing to grow in popularity, replacing traditional branch routers and switches on today’s networks.
- The rise of device vendors like Cisco-owned Meraki and Ubiquiti highlights a preference among IT professionals for devices with a seamless user experience, no matter the price.
“An increasingly crowded and competitive network device market presents a challenge for vendors at the top of the market and a huge opportunity for those at the bottom,” says Alex Hoff, Chief Product Officer at Auvik Networks. “We expect the market leaders of tomorrow will be those who truly understand how their customers use their products and prioritize giving their customers the best user experience possible.”
The report, titled Network Vendor Diversity 2020, is based on data from over 375,000 managed network devices deployed across a sample of 30,000 networks. To download a copy of the free report, visit auvik.com/vendordiversity20.
About Auvik Networks
Auvik’s cloud-based network management software keeps IT networks around the world running optimally. By automating and simplifying network management, Auvik helps rocket an IT team’s efficiency and capacity, while protecting the business from network risk. Auvik is one of the fastest growing North American technology companies, and is winner of the Deloitte Technology Fast 50, Deloitte Fast 500, and recognized as the #1 ranked Canadian company in the FT Americas’ Fastest Growing Companies 2020. Visit www.auvik.com or follow @AuvikNetworks on Twitter. Auvik is a registered trademark of Auvik Networks Inc.
Media contact
Ved Khan
Corporate Communications Manager, Auvik Networks
media@auvik.com
519-804-4700 x437