The optical fiber market in North America is poised for continued growth, thanks to the plans of several major service providers and dozens of municipalities to deploy FTTx technology this year.

Eric Musser, vice president and general manager, optical fiber for Corning Inc. said at a briefing during the OFC/NFOEC conference in Anaheim, Calif.  this week that fiber demand in the U.S. and Canada grew 30% last year. That compares favorably to 10% growth for fiber demand in Western Europe; stable growth in China and a 40% drop in Japan (primarily caused by NTT passing the midpoint in its FTTH buildout).

"In 2005, our view of the market overall is positive," Musser explained in an interview. "North America was the largest fiber market in 2004 and is showing strong growth." Overall, worldwide fiber demand last year totaled 55 million fiber kilometers, remaining stable for the second year in a row.  North America accounted for 30% of worldwide fiber demand last year, compared to 25% for China, 15% for Western Europe and 15% for Japan.

On the applications side, Musser noted that long-haul terrestrial/submarine grew 15% of a small base last year, driven by growth in emerging markets such as Russia Eastern Europe, Latin America and Africa. Demand for fiber in metro applications grew 15%, primarily from North America, Western Europe and Asian markets.  Access demand fell 15%, due largely to the large drop-off in demand in Japan that was not completely offset by growth in other markets. Premises grew about 15%, with data centers showing the strongest growth.

Musser added that the North American optical fiber market is being positively influenced by several factors such as planned FTTx deployments by SBC, Verizon and BellSouth; the increasing competition between RBOCs and MSOs to deliver "triple play" services; and the emergence of public policy favoring facilities-based investment.

"There's an attractive case that has developed for FTTH," says Musser.

For its part, Corning believes that any telecom market recovery this year will be access-led and that there will be continued global growth in both hardware and equipment. Musser expects a modest increase in optical fiber and cable volume this year and continued fiber price moderation.

"Any industry recovery will be led by construction in the access segment of the network, which is why we are focused on the FTTx opportunity around the globe," he explained.