IP camera market nearly doubled last year

A NEW report by research firm MultiMedia Intelligence shows the market for IP/networked video surveillance cameras grew 48 per cent in 2007, nearly four times the growth rate of the broader video surveillance equipment market, including cameras, DVRs, NVRs and IP encoders.Even with the IP/networked video surveillance market approaching $500 million worldwide, IP cameras remain a small percentage of the overall surveillance market, according to the report.Titled “Internet Protocol (IP)/Networked Video Surveillance Market: Equipment, Technology & Semiconductors,” the report concludes that despite the revolutionary shift to networked digital surveillance, the “transition is also seen as over-hyped and underperforming compared to many expectations”.MultiMedia Intelligence also reported that IT-oriented companies such as Cisco and EMC are adding a new competitive dynamic that is drastically accelerating product innovation. Surveillance competitors, such as Axis Communications, IndigoVision, March Networks, Nice Systems and Verint, are leveraging the growth of IP/networked surveillance to take on the legacy surveillance equipment manufacturers.Additionally, the DVR market’s overall growth is slowing as NVRs, both hardware-based and software-based, are emerging as the key growth category. The semiconductor opportunities in DVRs and IP/networked surveillance equipment are strong.