Date: 23/11/2010

In-Stat says smart energy to trigger rapid growth of ZigBee semiconductor market

In-Stat in its release has commented "ZigBee has been languishing as a technology for nearly 10 years, unable to find an application that would provide a launching pad for its mass adoption. That search may be over. With government stimulus and mandates forcing utilities to better manage electricity usage, smart energy is gaining traction as the largest volume growth opportunity for 802.15.4 and ZigBee, helping to push forecasts of chip and module shipments to over exceed three quarters of a billion units by 2014."

"Energy management organizations as well as IT companies like Google, are also taking an interest in helping drive ZigBee to the forefront of network adoption", says Brian O'Rourke, Principal Analyst. "Proprietary solutions still have a large share of the market, but because government measures require standards-based solutions, ZigBee stands to benefit significantly in the long run."

Some of the findings include:
In-Stat expects to see early growth in numerous market segments throughout the forecast period. However, aggressive growth is not expected until 2015 and beyond.
Industrial process control will be the second largest application by volume.
The ZigBee Alliance is expanding its participation in the European Union's Smart Grid standardization efforts.
Smart Energy and Smart Grid initiatives are worldwide, but it remains a regional determination regarding technology adoption.
Other opportunities exist in the energy space around solar monitoring and energy transport.