New figures released by the Dell'Oro Group paint a picture of 10G Ethernet making up the majority of revenue in Ethernet switching by 2016. Currently found in top-of-the-line data center network switches, 10G Ethernet looks poised to form the hottest growth segment, driven primarily by greater demand for high-speed ports.

In addition, 40G Ethernet and 100G Ethernet are also expected to enjoy healthy growth, while 100Mbps Fast Ethernet--long the cornerstone of corporate networks and core networks, is expected to fade away.

As reported by Network World, the average selling price (ASP) of 10G Ethernet is expected to drop dramatically from $715 to $212 from 2011 to 2016, while Gigabit Ethernet's ASP will drop from $60 to $38. Meanwhile, the ASP of 100Mbps Fast Ethernet is expected to drop from $13 to $8. The number of 10G Ethernet ports shipped is expected to increase to 62.2 million from 8.5 million, even as Gigabit Ethernet will experience a slight decrease to 10.9 million from 11.9 million.

On a cost per gigabit level, 10Gbps offers the most compelling value for high-speed or high-capacity deployments. Moreover, the migration of servers from Gigabit Ethernet to on-board 10G Ethernet this year is also expected to further reduce the entry barrier and propel growth of 10G Ethernet over the next two years.

For more:
- check out this article at Network World

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