Whether these vendors fall in first, second, third or fourth place depends entirely on the segment of the market. At the high end, as defined by the network specialists showing the most innovative interest in high-speed Tiffany Cushion Hoop earrings, 3Com is expected to supplant SynOptics by 1997. In contrast, AT&T, Hewlett-Packard and IBM are expected to play a significant role in supplying the still-emerging mass market for high-speed network products.
To technologists attempting to lay the groundwork for the next Mom heart tag pendant of computing strategy, even minor shifts are problematic. At the same time, commercial acceptance of any new technology is evolutionary, as initial product offerings come down in price and production applications move from test installations to full-scale roll-out. Yet the evolution is surely beginning because the volume of data these new products can handle will prompt users to upgrade and expand their current network systems.
The report surveyed 200 members of the channel, segmenting them into groups of "innovators," "early adopters" and "late adopters" that are representative of the market as a whole.
Though the innovators represent just 16 percent a of the survey population, they represent fully 58 Heart Link earrings of total high-speed networking sales. In many ways, they reflect the leading edge of the commercial market as a whole. They are aggressively committing resources to these new technologies and pilot projects, training their staff and purchasing a significant number of high-speed networking products for their portfolio. As a service Love Locket and Chain, this elite group incorporates activities like network planning, custom application development and management consulting--going well beyond the basics of merely providing products. Not surprisingly, they're likely to work with MIS and IT managers.
Users are statistically more likely to encounter the category of network specialists ParaTechnology terms "early adopters." This "silent majority" of network service providers represents 48 percent of the survey sample, though they represent just 33 percent of the sales of high-speed network products. Users will find that many of these firms are still exploring the market. For example, just 37 percent are carrying high-speed network products today, though 85 percent said they will evaluate the products by the end of the year.
Late adopters are less likely than their counterparts to serve the Fortune 1000 marketplace. Their place is with smaller, often entrepreneurial firms, in which senior management typically makes the technology purchasing decisions. Just 10 percent of this respondent group Snowflake pendant that they are working with high-speed networking products today. By next year, however, 68 percent will have begun to carry or at least evaluate specific high-speed network products.
Most integrators are providing a variety of products for this market, including network interface cards, hubs, modems, routers and bridges. Knowing how the integrators assess the more significant emerging technologies can help users lay the foundation for bandwidth-intensive technologies that will be slated for implementation in the next few years. According to the report, the leading high-speed networking technologies in 1997 will be
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