Global Software-Defined Networking Market to Reach $36.2 Billion by 2026

Software-defined networking (SDN) refers to a network architecture approach that physically decouples the network control plane from the forwarding plane and allows network administrators to dynamically and programmatically change configuration settings and manage network resources all from a centralized control console. SDN was originally introduced more than a decade ago. During its introduction, many experts believed that software-defined networks would eventually replace vertically-integrated, tightly coupled network products. The large data centers of tech giants, including Google, Amazon, and Facebook, all switched to SDN with the aim of improving their network agility and flexibility. The concepts of SDN are still utilized partly in cloud computing. Most of the existing large cloud service providers utilize SDN. With more workloads moving to cloud environments, many more organizations are expected to use SDN in the coming years.

Amid the COVID-19 crisis, the global market for Software-Defined Networking estimated at US$12.8 Billion in the year 2020, is projected to reach a revised size of US$36.2 Billion by 2026, growing at a CAGR of 19% over the analysis period. Services, one of the segments analyzed in the report, is projected to record a 18.5% CAGR and reach US$17.9 Billion by the end of the analysis period. After a thorough analysis of the business implications of the pandemic and its induced economic crisis, growth in the Software segment is readjusted to a revised 19% CAGR for the next 7-year period.

The U.S. Market is Estimated at $4.8 Billion in 2021, While China is Forecast to Reach $6.1 Billion by 2026

The Software-Defined Networking market in the U.S. is estimated at US$4.8 Billion in the year 2020. China, the world`s second largest economy, is forecast to reach a projected market size of US$6.1 Billion by the year 2026 trailing a CAGR of 26.2% over the analysis period. Among the other noteworthy geographic markets are Japan and Canada, each forecast to grow at 14.7% and 18.1% respectively over the analysis period. Within Europe, Germany is forecast to grow at approximately 17.2% CAGR.

Infrastructure Segment to Reach $9.1 Billion by 2026

In the global Infrastructure segment, USA, Canada, Japan, China and Europe will drive the 19.5% CAGR estimated for this segment. These regional markets accounting for a combined market size of US$2.4 Billion in the year 2020 will reach a projected size of US$8.5 Billion by the close of the analysis period. China will remain among the fastest growing in this cluster of regional markets. Led by countries such as Australia, India, and South Korea, the market in Asia-Pacific is forecast to reach US$1.2 Billion by the year 2026, while Latin America will expand at a 21.1% CAGR through the analysis period.

The market will be primarily driven by the growing adoption of cloud-based solutions. Businesses are exhibiting higher preference for private cloud, public cloud, hybrid cloud, and multi-cloud solutions over conventional on-premise data centers, owing to their low operational costs, high computation power, and their capability of scaling-up or scaling-down workload facilities. The growing demand for cloud-based solutions would bolster the requirement for better infrastructure capable of handling the rising high bandwidth and network traffic needs. SDN solutions hold tremendous potential in enhancing the use of network infrastructure, which is likely to contribute in increasing the adoption of these solutions by enterprises. In addition, the rising demand for intent-based networking is anticipated to positively impact the market and contribute to its robust growth over the next few years. In the past few years, market vendors have been developing intent-based networking solutions for complementing their SDN offerings. Intent-based networking leverages artificial intelligence (AI) and machine leaning (ML) technologies for fully automating the administrative tasks within the network. In addition, intent-based networking facilitates in translating business intent into security and compliance policies.

Moreover, intent-based networking helps in overcoming some of the key challenges in SDN and its boosting its adoption among enterprises, through the addition of capabilities, such as security, assurance, and automation. Moreover, the growing demand for server virtualization, cloud services, and data center consolidation are some other key factors that would play a vital role in augmenting growth in the global SDN market. Technological advancements and increasing adoption of bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policy in organizations are expected to serve as an opportunity for future market growth. However, security concerns due to the presence of a centralized controller that can be targeted for failure or attack of SDN networks can hinder the market growth.