OUTDOOR ANTENNA MARKET ANALYSIS

The weather conditions play a very important role in determining the performance of outdoor antennas that are used for telecommunication, broadcasting, and other purposes. Adverse weather such as heavy rain, snow, hailstorms, dust storms, and high winds can severely degrade the performance of outdoor antennas. The main issues caused by adverse weather include signal attenuation, interference, impedance mismatching, and physical damage to antennas. Signal attenuation due to precipitation is one of the major problems faced by outdoor antennas during rainy and snowy conditions. Heavy rain and hail can absorb and scatter radio signals, significantly reducing their strength and range. High winds in storms and hurricanes can potentially damage the physical structure of pole mounted outdoor antennas or cause them to fall. This leads to disruptions in services and increased maintenance costs.

According to the World Meteorological Organization, the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events have increased from 2020 to 2022 across many parts of the world. For example, as per the data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) of the U.S., the number of billion-dollar weather and climate disasters in the U.S. has risen from an average of five events per year during the 1990s to an average of 15 events per year from 2020 to 2022. This rising trend of extreme weather conditions poses serious challenges for the reliable and stable performance of outdoor antennas used by broadcasters, mobile network operators, and other telecom players. The outages and interruptions caused increases the total cost of ownership of outdoor antenna infrastructure. This major restraint acts as a deterrent for investments into outdoor antennas limiting the growth of the overall market. Suitable technological and engineering solutions need to be developed to make outdoor antennas more resilient to handle adverse weather conditions better.

Market Opportunity: Increasing adoption of smart antennas and MIMO technology

Smart antennas and MIMO technology allow for more efficient use of available spectrum by focusing radio signals to desired locations and nulling interfering signals. This enables higher throughput, lower interference, and increased coverage without additional infrastructure or spectrum. For example, according to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), MIMO technology helped increase network capacity 2-3 times compared to traditional antenna systems in test deployments by mobile operators in Europe and Asia Pacific in 2021-2022.

According to the Broadband Commission, mobile data traffic in North America is projected to grow at a CAGR of 46% from 2020 to 2023. Similarly, a World Economic Forum (WEF) report found that in Southeast Asia, mobile internet penetration reached 75% by end of 2022, but data consumption per user is set to grow four times by 2025.