The worldwide microwave equipment market grew from $4.94 billion to $5.85 billion between 2008 and 2009 (up 18%), according to a newly published report from Infonetics Research. 
Some highlights:
- Following a down quarter in 3Q09, worldwide microwave equipment revenue increased 3% in 4Q09, a modest market performance in a quarter that is usually seasonally strong.
- Ethernet-only microwave equipment revenue is forecast by Infonetics to grow at a 100% compound annual growth rate from 2009 to 2014.
- The majority of microwave equipment purchased (81% in 4Q09) continues to be deployed to backhaul traffic for mobile backhaul networks.
- The single biggest obstacle to the continued adoption of microwave equipment as the dominant backhaul solution is spectrum availability, particularly in Western Europe.
- Ericsson and NEC continue in a tight race for revenue leadership in the worldwide microwave equipment market, with Ericsson eking ahead in 2009 by a fraction of a share point.
- The big mover of the quarter was Huawei, which jumped into the #3 spot in 4Q09, leap-frogging Nokia.
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