Network Attached Storage (NAS) Devices - Global Strategic Business Report

Global Industry Analysts, Inc, April 2012, Pages: 664

This report analyzes the worldwide markets for Network Attached Storage (NAS) Devices in US$ Million by the following Product Segments: Enterprise, Departmental, and Workgroup. The report provides separate comprehensive analytics for the North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of World. Annual estimates and forecasts are provided for the period 2009 through 2017. Also, a six-year historic analysis is provided for these markets.

The report profiles 81 companies including many key and niche players such as Buffalo Inc., Dell, Inc., EMC Corporation, Isilon Systems, Hewlett-Packard Company, 3PAR Inc., Hitachi Data Systems Corporation, International Business Machines Corporation, LSI Corporation, NetApp, Inc., NetGear, Inc., Overland Storage, Inc., Oracle, Panasas Inc., and SGI Corporation.

Market data and analytics are derived from primary and secondary research. Company profiles are primarily based upon search engine sources in the public domain.

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NETWORK ATTACHED STORAGE (NAS) DEVICES

A GLOBAL STRATEGIC BUSINESS REPORT

CONTENTS

I. INTRODUCTION, METHODOLOGY & PRODUCT DEFINITIONS
Study Reliability and Reporting Limitations I-1
Disclaimers I-2
Data Interpretation & Reporting Level I-3
Quantitative Techniques & Analytics I-3
Product Definitions and Scope of Study I-3
Enterprise NAS Market I-3
Departmental NAS Market I-4
Workgroup NAS Market I-4

II. Executive Summary

1. INDUSTRY OVERVIEW II-1
A Quick Primer II-1
Implications of Data Explosion II-1
NAS Offers a Lucrative Business Case As Compared to DAS, SAN II-2
Growing Need for Anytime, Anywhere Accessibility to Corporate
& Internet Networks Augur Well for NAS Devices Market II-3
Cost Benefits Spur NAS Popularity II-3
Market Scenario II-3
Impact of the 2007-2009 Recession in Retrospect II-3
Will Growth in Europe be Held Hostage by the Debt Crisis? II-4
Outlook II-5
Emerging Markets Prove Lucrative for NAS Devices Market II-5
Competitive Scenario II-5
NetApp Leads Midrange and High-End NAS Hardware Market II-6
Noteworthy Drivers & Trends II-6
Proliferation of Internet Provides Fertile Market Environment II-6
Hardware Upgrade & Replacement Needs Fuel Demand for NAS
Devices II-6
Small and Medium Sector Fuel Demand for NAS Devices II-7
Moving Beyond SMBs II-7
SAN-NAS Hybrid Storage Solution II-7
Data Reduplication Maximizes Storage Utilization II-8
Growing Trend towards Outsourcing Storage Needs II-8
Where Network Attached Storage Meets the Cloud II-8
NAS Systems Scale-Out to Gratify Rising Storage Needs II-9
Challenges to Reckon With II-10

2. PRODUCT OVERVIEW II-11
Introduction II-11
NAS Devices II-11
NAS Protocols II-12
Applications of NAS II-12
Advantages of NAS II-12
Disadvantages of NAS II-13
Types of NAS II-14
Single Disk Solutions II-14
Enterprise Systems II-14
Classification of NAS Market II-14
Enterprise NAS Market II-14
Departmental NAS Market II-14
Workgroup NAS Market II-15
NAS & Other Storage Technologies: A Comparative Analysis II-15
NAS Devices Vs General Purpose Servers II-15
NAS Vs Direct Attached Storage II-16
NAS Vs SAN II-16
NAS Vs Fibre Channel SAN and iSCSI SAN II-17
Comparative Analysis of the Storage Characteristics of SAS,
NAS and SAN II-18

3. PRODUCT INTRODUCTIONS/INNOVATIONS II-19
Isilon Unveils NAS Hardware and Software II-19
Plextor Unveils PX-NAS2 II-19
QNAP Systems Launches Turbo NAS Server Series II-19
Promise Technology to Launch SmartStor Zero NS2600 Network
Storage Device II-20
Isilon Expands into File-based Storage Requirements with New
NAS Scale-out Products II-20
Panasas Launches Multi-Petabyte NAS Scale-Out Solution II-21
SGI Launches InfiniteStorage Total Control Suite II-22
LaCie Launches LaCie Network Space 2 II-23
Pace Launches Home Content Sharing Solution II-23
Ctera Networks Unveils Ctera C200 and Ctera CloudPlug II-23
Iomega Unveils StorCenter ix2-200 II-24
Iomega Introduces New Features in StorCenter ix4-200d II-24
Hitachi Data Systems Launches NAS 3080 and 3090 II-24
EZY Technologies Unveils MyXerver™ MX3600 II-25
Western Digital Launches My Book World Edition Dual Drive
Network Storage Device II-25
RingCube Technologies Launches vDesk version 2.1 II-25
Zenith Infotech Launches ARCA II-26
Promise Technology Launches SmartStor NS4600 II-26
LaCie Launches d2 Network and Big Disk Network Storage Devices II-27
INLINE Incorporates InfiniBand Technology into FileStorm
Storage NAS Products II-27
Seagate Launches Black Armor II-27
Iomega Upgrades StorCenter ix2 II-27
Qnap Systems Launches TS-809 Pro Turbo NAS II-28
Cisco Launches Product Range for SMEs II-28
Buffalo Introduces TeraStation TS-XEL/R5 II-29
QNAP Launches 3.2 Version of NAS Management Software II-29
Gridstore Introduces Beta of NASg Storage Platform II-29
Egnyte Launches Local Cloud on NAS Solution II-30
Asus Rolls Out TS Mini Server Device with NAS Capability II-30
Envive Launches Media Server with 14TB NAS Capacity II-30
Addoincs Launches Low Cost NAS Device II-31
HP Introduces New Data Storage Products II-31
QNAP Launches Single-Bay TS-110 Turbo NAS Server II-31
Thecus® Technology Rolls Out N7700PRO II-32
Buffalo Technology Unveils TeraStation III Rackmount NAS Device II-32
Netgear Launches Netgear Stora NAS Device II-32
LG Unveils N2R1 NAS Device II-33
Buffalo Technology Unveils TeraStation Duo NAS Device II-33
Thecus Technology Rolls Out N5500 NAS Device II-33
Thecus Technology Unveils N0204 Mini NAS Device II-34
Asus Expands Eee Line of Devices to Include EeeNAS II-34
NetGear Rolls Out ReadyNAS NVX II-34
Buffalo Technology Rolls Out LinkStation Mini SSD II-35
Iomega Launches StorCenter Pro ix4-100 NAS Devices II-35

4. RECENT INDUSTRY ACTIVITY II-36
NetApp to Acquire Storage Systems Division of LSI Corporation II-36
Hitachi Data Systems Acquires Blue Arc II-36
Oracle Purchases Pillar Data II-36
HP Concludes 3PAR Acquisition II-36
Oracle Acquires Sun Microsystems, Inc II-37
Rackable Systems Acquires Silicon Graphics, Inc II-37
RELDATA and PC Connection Ink Reseller Agreement II-37
Federal Agency Selects IceWEB II-37
Mitsubishi Kagaku Media Acquires Freecom II-38
LSI Enters into Definitive Agreement with ONStor II-38
Hewlett-Packard Acquires Ibrix II-39
INLINE Sells Multi-terabyte Imagery Solutions II-39
BlueArc and SGI Enter into OEM Agreement II-39
PLX Technology Acquires Oxford Semiconductor II-40

5. FOCUS ON SELECT GLOBAL PLAYERS II-41
Buffalo Inc (Japan) II-41
Dell, Inc. (US) II-41
EMC Corporation (US) II-42
Isilon Systems (US) II-42
Hewlett-Packard Company (US) II-42
3PAR Inc (US) II-43
Hitachi Data Systems Corporation (USA) II-43
International Business Machines Corporation (US) II-44
LSI Corporation (US) II-44
NetApp, Inc. (US) II-44
NetGear, Inc. (US) II-45
Overland Storage, Inc. (US) II-45
Oracle (USA) II-45
Panasas Inc. (US) II-46
SGI Corporation (US) II-46

6. GLOBAL MARKET PERSPECTIVE II-47
Table 1: World Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis for
Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Geographic
Region/Country - North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest
of World Markets Independently Analyzed with Annual Sales
Figures in US$ Million for Years 2009 through 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) II-47

Table 2: World Historic Review for Network-Attached Storage
(NAS) Devices by Geographic Region/Country - North America,
Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of World Markets Independently
Analyzed with Annual Sales Figures in US$ Million for Years
2003 through 2008 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) II-48

Table 3: World 15-Year Perspective for Network-Attached
Storage (NAS) Devices by Geographic Region/Country -
Percentage Breakdown of Dollar Sales for North America,
Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of World Markets for Years
2003, 2011 and 2017 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) II-49

Table 4: World Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis for
Enterprise Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by
Geographic Region/Country - North America, Europe,
Asia-Pacific, and Rest of World Markets Independently Analyzed
with Annual Sales Figures in US$ Million for Years 2009
through 2017 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) II-50

Table 5: World Historic Review for Enterprise Network-
Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Geographic Region/ Country -
North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of World Markets
Independently Analyzed with Annual Sales Figures in US$
Million for Years 2003 through 2008 (includes corresponding
Graph/Chart) II-51

Table 6: World 15-Year Perspective for Enterprise
Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Geographic Region/
Country - Percentage Breakdown of Dollar Sales for North
America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of World Markets for
Years 2003, 2011 and 2017 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) II-52

Table 7: World Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis for
Departmental Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by
Geographic Region/Country - North America, Europe,
Asia-Pacific, and Rest of World Markets Independently Analyzed
with Annual Sales Figures in US$ Million for Years 2009
through 2017 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) II-53

Table 8: World Historic Review for Departmental
Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Geographic Region/
Country - North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of
World Markets Independently Analyzed with Annual Sales Figures
in US$ Million for Years 2003 through 2008 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) II-54

Table 9: World 15-Year Perspective for Departmental
Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Geographic
Region/Country - Percentage Breakdown of Dollar Sales for
North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of World Markets
for Years 2003, 2011 and 2017 (includes corresponding
Graph/Chart) II-55

Table 10: World Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis for
Workgroup Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Geographic
Region/Country - North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest
of World Markets Independently Analyzed with Annual Sales
Figures in US$ Million for Years 2009 through 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) II-56

Table 11: World Historic Review for Workgroup Network-Attached
Storage (NAS) Devices by Geographic Region/ Country - North
America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of World Markets
Independently Analyzed with Annual Sales Figures in US$
Million for Years 2003 through 2008 (includes corresponding
Graph/Chart) II-57

Table 12: World 15-Year Perspective for Workgroup
Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Geographic
Region/Country - Percentage Breakdown of Dollar Sales for
North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of World Markets
for Years 2003, 2011 and 2017 (includes corresponding
Graph/Chart) II-58

III. MARKET

1. NORTH AMERICA III-1
Market Analytics III-1
Table 13: North American Recent Past, Current & Future
Analysis for Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by
Segment - Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS Devices,
and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets Analyzed with Annual Sales
Figures in US$ Million for Years 2009 through 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-1

Table 14: North American Historic Review for
Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment -
Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS Devices, and
Workgroup NAS Devices Markets Analyzed with Annual Sales
Figures in US$ Million for Years 2003 through 2008 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-2

Table 15: North American 15-Year Perspective for
Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment -
Percentage Breakdown of Dollar Sales for Enterprise NAS
Devices, Departmental NAS Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices
Markets for Years 2003, 2011 and 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-3

2. EUROPE III-4
Market Analytics III-4
Table 16: European Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis
for Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Geographic
Region/Country - France, Germany, Italy, UK, and Rest of
Europe Markets Independently Analyzed with Annual Sales in
US$ Million for Years 2009 through 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-4

Table 17: European Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis
for Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment -
Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS Devices, and
Workgroup NAS Devices Markets Analyzed with Annual Sales
Figures in US$ Million for Years 2009 through 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-5

Table 18: European Historic Review for Network-Attached
Storage (NAS) Devices by Geographic Region/Country - France,
Germany, Italy, UK, and Rest of Europe Markets Analyzed with
Annual Sales Figures in US$ Million for Years 2003 through
2008 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-6

Table 19: European Historic Review for Network-Attached
Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment - Enterprise NAS Devices,
Departmental NAS Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets
Analyzed with Annual Sales Figures in US$ Million for Years
2003 through 2008 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-7

Table 20: European 15-Year Perspective for Network-Attached
Storage (NAS) Devices by Geographic Region/ Country -
Percentage Breakdown of Dollar Sales for France, Germany,
Italy, UK, and Rest of European Markets for Years 2003, 2011
and 2017 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-8

Table 21: European 15-Year Perspective for Network-Attached
Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment - Percentage Breakdown of
Dollar Sales for Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS
Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets for Years 2003,
2011 and 2017 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-9

2a. FRANCE III-10
Market Analytics III-10
Table 22: French Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis for
Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment -
Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS Devices, and
Workgroup NAS Devices Markets Analyzed with Annual Sales
Figures in US$ Million for Years 2009 through 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-10

Table 23: French Historic Review for Network- Attached
Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment - Enterprise NAS Devices,
Departmental NAS Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets
Analyzed with Annual Sales Figures in US$ Million for Years
2003 through 2008 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-11

Table 24: French 15-Year Perspective for Network- Attached
Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment - Percentage Breakdown of
Dollar Sales for Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS
Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets for Years 2003,
2011 and 2017 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-12

2b. GERMANY III-13
Market Analytics III-13
Table 25: German Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis for
Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment -
Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS Devices, and
Workgroup NAS Devices Markets Analyzed with Annual Sales
Figures in US$ Million for Years 2009 through 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-13

Table 26: German Historic Review for Network- Attached
Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment - Enterprise NAS Devices,
Departmental NAS Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets
Analyzed with Annual Sales Figures in US$ Million for Years
2003 through 2008 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-14

Table 27: German 15-Year Perspective for Network- Attached
Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment - Percentage Breakdown of
Dollar Sales for Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS
Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets for Years 2003,
2011 and 2017 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-15

2c. ITALY III-16
Market Analytics III-16
Table 28: Italian Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis for
Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment -
Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS Devices, and
Workgroup NAS Devices Markets Analyzed with Annual Sales
Figures in US$ Million for Years 2009 through 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-16

Table 29: Italian Historic Review for Network- Attached
Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment - Enterprise NAS Devices,
Departmental NAS Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets
Analyzed with Annual Sales Figures in US$ Million for Years
2003 through 2008 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-17

Table 30: Italian 15-Year Perspective for Network- Attached
Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment - Percentage Breakdown of
Dollar Sales for Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS
Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets for Years 2003,
2011 and 2017 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-18

2d. THE UNITED KINGDOM III-19
Market Analytics III-19
Table 31: UK Recent Past, Current & Future Analysis for
Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment -
Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS Devices, and
Workgroup NAS Devices Markets Analyzed with Annual Sales
Figures in US$ Million for Years 2009 through 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-19

Table 32: UK Historic Review for Network-Attached Storage
(NAS) Devices by Segment - Enterprise NAS Devices,
Departmental NAS Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets
Analyzed with Annual Sales Figures in US$ Million for Years
2003 through 2008 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-20

Table 33: UK 15-Year Perspective for Network- Attached
Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment - Percentage Breakdown of
Dollar Sales for Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS
Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets for Years 2003,
2011 and 2017 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-21

2e. REST OF EUROPE III-22
Market Analytics III-22
Table 34: Rest of European Recent Past, Current & Future
Analysis for Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by
Segment - Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS Devices,
and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets Analyzed with Annual Sales
Figures in US$ Million for Years 2009 through 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-22

Table 35: Rest of European Historic Review for
Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment -
Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS Devices, and
Workgroup NAS Devices Markets Analyzed with Annual Sales
Figures in US$ Million for Years 2003 through 2008 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-23

Table 36: Rest of European 15-Year Perspective for
Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment -
Percentage Breakdown of Dollar Sales for Enterprise NAS
Devices, Departmental NAS Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices
Markets for Years 2003, 2011 and 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-24

3. ASIA-PACIFIC III-25
Market Analytics III-25
Table 37: Asia-Pacific Recent Past, Current & Future
Analysis for Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by
Segment - Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS Devices,
and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets Analyzed with Annual Sales
Figures in US$ Million for Years 2009 through 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-25

Table 38: Asia-Pacific Historic Review for Network- Attached
Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment - Enterprise NAS Devices,
Departmental NAS Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets
Analyzed with Annual Sales Figures in US$ Million for Years
2003 through 2008 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-26

Table 39: Asia-Pacific 15-Year Perspective for
Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment -
Percentage Breakdown of Dollar Sales for Enterprise NAS
Devices, Departmental NAS Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices
Markets for Years 2003, 2011 and 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-27

4. REST OF WORLD III-28
Market Analytics III-28
Table 40: Rest of World Recent Past, Current & Future
Analysis for Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by
Segment - Enterprise NAS Devices, Departmental NAS Devices,
and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets Analyzed with Annual Sales
Figures in US$ Million for Years 2009 through 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-28

Table 41: Rest of World Historic Review for Network-Attached
Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment - Enterprise NAS Devices,
Departmental NAS Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices Markets
Analyzed with Annual Sales Figures in US$ Million for Years
2003 through 2008 (includes corresponding Graph/Chart) III-29

Table 42: Rest of World 15-Year Perspective for
Network-Attached Storage (NAS) Devices by Segment -
Percentage Breakdown of Dollar Sales for Enterprise NAS
Devices, Departmental NAS Devices, and Workgroup NAS Devices
Markets for Years 2003, 2011 and 2017 (includes
corresponding Graph/Chart) III-30

IV. COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Total Companies Profiled: 81 (including Divisions/Subsidiaries - 86)

------------------------------------------
Region/Country Players
------------------------------------------
The United States 66
Japan 3
Europe 4
The United Kingdom 1
Rest of Europe 3
Asia-Pacific (Excluding Japan) 12
Middle-East 1
------------------------------------------

In a knowledge driven era where information is the engine that drives enterprises worldwide, management of information is gaining utmost importance. Widespread implementation of CRM and ERP solutions have contributed towards enterprise data explosion by triggering exponential growth in the volume of information generated about partners, suppliers and customers. Other factors driving data growth and the ensuing storage needs include generation of rich media, regulatory compliance that mandates maintenance of audit trails, and financial data, and gargantuan email archives, given that email is a primary vehicle of business communication. Networked machines and processes additionally generate a steady stream of real time data, which adds to the information overload being confronted by modern companies. While data storage remains an indispensable IT need, the growing magnitude of the importance of this very basic IT function can be put into perspective by the fact that information is currently multiplying at a rate of over 65% each year and total data generated worldwide is projected to reach over 3 million petabytes by the year 2020. Against this backdrop, the critical importance of data storage comes to the fore. As companies seek to overcome data storage performance limits, significant opportunities are in store for storage technologies like NAS devices.

Network-attached storage (NAS) is one of the on-line storage architectures that promise to deliver businesses with cost-effective, scalable, and manageable alternatives for ever-growing data requirements. As a networked storage technology that allows connected host systems to share data, NAS devices have gained immense popularity in a short span of time, thanks to the wide range of benefits they offer. Advantages stacked in favor of the NAS technology include increase in data availability, improvements in server performance, optimized data access, end-user transparency, easy setup, low installation and maintenance costs and platform-independence.

Demand for NAS devices is forecast to be driven by the growing need for anytime, anywhere accessibility to corporate & internet networks. Emphasis on business continuity planning, growing adoption of remote and virtual office environments and the ensuing need to provide remote access to corporate networks to employees, is helping fuel the uptake of the NAS technology. Business continuity requires maintaining backup copies of primary data and NAS devices will find increased use as filers and backup targets in storing copies of user data. Integration of native deduplication abilities in NAS devices is additionally expected to enhance the use of NAS devices as backup targets. Data deduplication replaces duplicate files on the NAS network with tags/links referring to the original file. Reduction in volume of the data being actually stored on the NAS consequently reduces the amount of data that the NAS must access. Therefore, less head movement and less searching results in faster data access.

Demand is also expected to remain especially high among SMBs, as NAS devices provide a cost effective solution for these companies with are often saddled with issues, such as, limited access to financial and IT resources. Larger businesses are also gradually creeping into the spotlight as potentially lucrative clients for NAS vendors. The market is gradually witnessing transition from SMBs specific solutions to more advanced large enterprise-centric solutions. Unlike SMBs that adopt NAS solutions for core applications, large enterprises rely on NAS for less mission-critical applications, and for specific departments, workgroups and remote offices.

Technology innovations aimed at raising the performance bar of NAS devices is expected to benefit the market in the medium term. Cloud computing, in this regard, promises to expand the functionalities of NAS devices and eventually expand market opportunities in this space. Cloud network-attached storage (NAS) is currently waxing in popularity. As enterprises are now looking at deploying storage architecture, which lowers the total cost of ownership while improving Return on Investments (RoI), the concept of cloud NAS is snowballing in the market. The key benefit of Cloud NAS is the ability to access information instantaneously without the limitations of the physical location of the data. Advancements in key capabilities such as payment models, reliability, security and multi-tenancy are expected to increase the adoption of cloud storage in the upcoming years.

IT spending in Europe currently remains nervous with the mixed signals emanating from the handling of region’s debt crisis driving the IT industry to swing between hopes and fears. At the extreme pessimistic end of the spectrum is the belief that if the debt and financial dominoes begin to fall across the core euro-zone economies, IT spending could painfully crimp in technology sectors, such as, computing hardware, enterprise software and IT services. Even in the event of the European Union successfully resolving the euro area debt crisis, slower and rather anemic growth will continue to haunt the region even into the future, primarily because the euro crisis in reality masks a deeper financial and economic malaise built through years of unsustainable fiscal policies adopted by profligate governments in the euro zone. Companies and enterprises in all industrial sectors are therefore expected to remain prepared for times of scarce financial resources. Austerity measures like increased taxes and higher costs of financing, will create fiscal pain, which in turn will take its toll on corporate IT spending. IT in the public sector, under such a scenario, is forecast to be acutely impacted, given the greater pressure faced by government owned companies to shed debt and prune down budgets. IT budget cuts, project cancellations, postponements and the general tendency to do more with less will act as a drag on IT spending.

Currently, however, as the “Business Climate Indicator”, a key pillar of growth in the market, improves in the European Union reflective of the guarded optimism prevailing in the marketplace, there exist little signs of changes in corporate spending on critical IT products and services. Against this backdrop, outlook NAS devices remains positive with demand largely expected to hold up in the year 2012.

As stated by the new market research report on Network Attached Storage (NAS) Devices, North America represents the largest market worldwide. Strong future growth is however expected to stem from Asia-Pacific. The region is forecast to grow at a CAGR of 14.1%, over the analysis period.

Global Industry Analysts ©

- Aberdeen LLC (USA)
- Addonics Technologies, Inc. (USA)
- Amax Information Technologies, Inc. (USA)
- American Megatrends, Inc. (USA)
- Asustek Computer, Inc. (Taiwan)
- A-Tec Subsystem, Inc. (Taiwan)
- Avere Systems, Inc. (USA)
- Bit Micro Networks, Inc. (USA)
- BlueArc Corporation (USA)
- BridgeSTOR, LLC (USA)
- Broadberry Data Systems LLC (USA)
- Buffalo, Inc. (Japan)
- Buffalo Technology (USA), Inc. (USA)
- Cisco Systems, Inc. (USA)
- Conceptronic (The Netherlands)
- Coraid, Inc. (USA)
- CTERA Networks Ltd. (Israel)
- Data Robotics, Inc. (USA)
- Dell, Inc. (USA)
- D-Link Systems, Inc. (Taiwan)
- D-Link International Pte., Ltd. (Singapore)
- Egnyte, Inc. (USA)
- EMC Corporation (USA)
- Iomega Corporation (USA)
- Isilon Systems LLC (USA)
- Envive, Inc. (USA)
- eRacks Open Source Systems (USA)
- Gluster, Inc. (USA)
- Gridstore, Inc. (USA)
- Hewlett-Packard Company (USA)
- 3PAR, Inc. (USA)
- Hitachi Data Systems Corporation (USA)
- Huawei Symantec Technologies Co., Ltd. (China)
- Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (China)
- IC Intracom USA, Inc. (USA)
- IcewEB, Inc. (USA)
- Ingrasys Technology, Inc. (USA)
- International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) (USA)
- Iron Systems, Inc. (USA)
- Kintronics, Inc. (USA)
- LaCie USA (USA)
- Lanner Electronics (USA), Inc. (USA)
- LG Electronics, Inc. (Korea)
- LSI Corporation (USA)
- Micronet Technology, Inc. (USA)
- Mitsubishi Kagaku Media Co., Ltd. - Freecom BV (The Netherlands)
- MRT Communication Ltd. (Taiwan)
- Nasuni Corporation (USA)
- NEC Corporation (Japan)
- NetApp, Inc. (USA)
- NetGear, Inc. (USA)
- Newtech Co., Ltd. (Japan)
- Nexenta® Systems, Inc. (USA)
- Oracle Corporation (USA)
- Overland Storage, Inc. (USA)
- Panasas, Inc. (USA)
- Pillar Data Systems (USA)
- Plextor LLC (USA)
- PLX Technology, Inc. (USA)
- PrimeArray Systems, Inc. (USA)
- Promise Technology, Inc. (USA)
- Proware Technology Corporation (Taiwan)
- QNAP Systems, Inc. (USA)
- Quantum Corporation (USA)
- Reldata, Inc. (USA)
- RingCube Technologies (USA)
- Scale Computing, Inc. (USA)
- Seagate Technology LLC (USA)
- Silicon Graphics International Corporation (USA)
- Silicon Mechanics, Inc. (USA)
- SMC Networks, Inc. (USA)
- Super Micro Computer, Inc. (USA)
- Symantec Corporation (USA)
- Synology, Inc. (Taiwan)
- TCE Company, Inc. (USA)
- TEAC America, Inc. (USA)
- Thecus Technology Corporation (Taiwan)
- Unibrain SA (Greece)
- Universal Tech Pte., Ltd. (Singapore)
- USI Corporation (USA)
- Vantec Thermal Technologies (USA)
- Video Technics, Inc. (USA)
- Western Digital Corporation (USA)
- Zenith Infotech Ltd. (USA)
- ZigZap Technologies (USA)
- Zyxel Communications UK Ltd. (UK)

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