Contents:

INDUSTRY OVERVIEW Supplier summary Export statistics Major customers Main production center Suppliers demographics VoIP phones VoIP PBXs VoIP gateways & routers Supplier survey Export prices, price decrease, export sales, target markets, capital expenditure, challenges, export capability, R&D focus SUPPLIER PROFILES Supplier locations Industry composition Exporter ranking Supplier matrix Production checklist Supplier profiles PRODUCT GALLERY Top-selling export products

Summary:

In this Report: - 14 in-depth company profiles - 54 top-selling export products - Supplier demographics - Supplier survey - Industry statistics & charts China’s overseas shipments of VoIP products are rising steadily as the technology is increasingly being adopted worldwide, particularly in the commercial and enterprise segments. Leveraging their price advantage over foreign counterparts, makers in the country have secured a strong position in the low-end and midrange sectors. But they are still struggling to establish a niche in an industry that is dominated by a few large international companies. The global financial crunch, meanwhile, is both a challenge and an opportunity for the VoIP industry. Suppliers expect export sales to continue their gradual upward trend as more enterprise and personal users choose VoIP instead of conventional telephony in pursuit of cost reductions amid the economic downturn. But even though VoIP deployment is spreading worldwide and traffic increasing, China suppliers face stiff competition, especially from makers of other less expensive devices, including computer microphones. The lack of standards in the use of VoIP phones, particularly from the operator side, also poses a challenge to suppliers, as does the variety of protocols used. Under efforts to boost sales, suppliers are keeping an eye on the market as VoIP technology continues to advance toward the wireless mobile communication platform. Many are also banking on the developments in China’s telecom restructuring program, hoping that some provisions will benefit the line. And in an increasingly convergent and broadband environment, makers are optimistic that growth is in store for the VoIP industry. The following are some of the key trends observed in China’s VoIP product industry: - Exports in the line are expected to grow in the next 12 months but at a moderate 10 percent rate. - Makers are providing aftersales service even as they continue to offer prices relatively lower than foreign counterparts. They will maintain focus on the low-end and midrange sectors. - Suppliers will direct product development on function integration, wireless connectivity and enhanced audio transmission. Improved hardware and software compatibility will likewise be emphasized. - Anticipating increased demand from Europe, North America and the Asia-Pacific region, suppliers intend to raise capital expenditure between 20 and 50 percent in coming months. This report covers the major types of VoIP products manufactured in China, namely VoIP products, including phones, PBXs, and gateways and routers. These are discussed in separate product sections, each detailing common features found in mainstream models. Price and R&D trends are also covered. The Industry Overview section tracks production and export growth in China’s VoIP industry. It also discusses the supplier base and the main production hubs. The mainland has more than 80 VoIP phone suppliers, which turn out from 2,000 to 5,000 units a month, excluding USB phones. VoIP gateway and router makers number about 100. They have a monthly output of 1,000 to 5,000 units. VoIP PBX suppliers, meanwhile, are estimated at around 10. Irrespective of product focus, the majority of makers focus on OEM and ODM business with only a few promoting in-house brands. A handful of suppliers with strong R&D capability lead product trends in the industry. The rest are small and midsize companies that follow in their footsteps. Guangdong, Fujian and Jiangsu provinces, Hong Kong and Shanghai host China’s VoIP product suppliers.

Methodology

To produce this report, the author surveyed a wide range of suppliers. Rather than focus simply on high-profile makers, we compiled a representative sample of large, midsize and emerging manufacturers. All profiled companies are export-oriented professional suppliers that may or may not be clients of the author's. The selection of suppliers is designed to reflect the composition of the industry in China in terms of geographic spread, business type and company ownership. For in-depth company profiles, our research teams interviewed senior executives and export managers who discussed their recent performance and provided price, R&D, production and export forecasts for the next 12 months. The interviews were done in person, by phone or e-mail. In each case, companies were required to answer specific questions designed to verify their manufacturing and export credentials, including their production and export statistics, and a breakdown of exports by product type and market. Our production checklist details the product-specific manufacturing capability of each supplier. All profiled suppliers participated in a survey designed to provide insight into product and price trends, and challenges facing the industry in the next 12 months. All survey questions are single choice. Results were calculated based on the actual number of valid responses to each question.