CONSUMER NETWORK storage (CNS) is moving from the innovator stage to the early adopter stage, and will experience rapid growth over the next several years, according to a new study from In-Stat.
But the report Global Consumer Network Storage Market says that major vendors must focus on customer education, awareness, and ease-of-use to influence consumer demand and to increase wider adoption.
“Despite intense market competition, the six largest players increased market share in 2009”, said In-Stat analyst Norm Bogen, in a press release. “But with narrowing product differentiation, competition will shift to ease-of-use, functionality and brand awareness. This combination of maturing market dynamics and a renaissance in the consumer home technology environment will push the growth of the consumer network storage market beyond the ‘innovator stage’ and into its ‘early adopter’ phase by 2014.”
The research also predicted that:
– The market will continue to mature as customer education and ease of use drive adoption, and market share is concentrated among the leading vendors;
– Price will become more of an issue, and even the high-end CNS products will not exceed $800 per unit;
– Web-enabled consumer devices, such as TVs and Blu-ray players, are diversifying the demand and applications for CNS devices; and
– The consumer network storage market will grow at a CAGR of nearly 40% between 2009 and 2014.
