Antenna Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

Antenna Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The Global Antenna Market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.8% during the forecast period. Consumer electronic gadgets such as smartphones, laptops, wearables, tablets, and other devices are packed with various antennas from GPS, Bluetooth, WiFi, 2G, 3G, 4G, and other frequency bands; the lower the frequency, the larger the size. The only custom-made device on the phone is the antenna, which necessitates significant R&D investment by vendors.

Key Highlights

• The 4G mobile antenna manufacturing process has progressed from the initial shrapnel antenna to the FPC and LDS antenna. Most 4G connectivity antennas are currently developed using LDS and FPC technology; shrapnel antennas, namely metal stamped and formed antennas, provide OEMs with low-cost and highly repeatable manufacturing solutions that include multiple standard or custom antenna designs.
• Stamping technology is a proven solution with numerous advantages, including low cost, integrated contacts connected to the ground plane, production dies that support mass production, and additional assembly stations to increase production.
• FPC has high wiring density, lightweight, thin thickness, and good bendability. The feeder, which has a high gain and is free to install, is used to connect the FPC antenna. Due to the many advantages the technology giant provides, OEMs like Apple integrate the antennas with LCP; at this time, the demand for LCP and LDS antennas is anticipated to command a significant market share.
• The technology for LDS antennas is mature and stable, the product performance is excellent, and any three-dimensional laser incident surface can achieve a high-precision layout. This technology is more expensive than FPC but is suitable for three-dimensional surfaces and has a larger design space. It demands the use of particular materials and electroless plating.
• However, with the growing consumer electronics industry's propensity to adopt LCP antennas, market vendors are expected to focus on developing and offering LCP and MPI solutions over the forecasted period.
• LDS and LCP technology combined are anticipated to hold a significant share of the market with the fastest growth in demand for MPI technology over the coming years due to 5G demand, with the LDS antenna market reaching its maturity stage and growing LCP demand.
• The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the telecommunications industry. Individuals are paying more time at home for work and leisure and using enormous amounts of data due to the rise in the number of nations placing restrictions on travel. The main priorities for telecom companies are planned investments in 5G and boosting network resilience.
• Additionally, high demand for mobile and communications networks, including a temporary suspension of data caps, could degrade service quality, impacting the market as companies from various industries implement remote work plans.

Key Market TrendsPhone Antenna is Expected to Have a Significant Market Share

• The key factors driving the phone antenna market are the proliferation of smartphones, the growth of the telecom service market, 3G technology, 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology, and 5G. The mobile phone communication antenna can accurately follow the path of a region's economic health. The first example of this correlation concerns the most recent financial crisis, during which the market for mobile communication antennas experienced a downward trend.
• The life cycle of phone antenna products is anticipated to be shorter due to the ongoing development of cutting-edge technologies. Because installation and after-sales services are in such high demand, the segment is also expected to grow. Due to its quick data transfer compared to HSDPA+, LTE technology is becoming increasingly popular, opening up new growth opportunities.
• The market for telecommunications equipment may be able to meet the growing demand. The adoption of phone antennas is being encouraged by the expanding use of smart antennas in smartphones and the rising demand for smart antennas in wireless communication.
• For instance, according to American Tower Corporation, in 2021, the company, which operates wireless and broadcast communications infrastructure, owned 912 distributed antenna system (DAS) sites in India.
• Additionally, the increased demand for faster data transmission in modern communication systems with optimized evolution data, high-speed downloading, and web browsing has compelled businesses to boost wireless transmission efficiency, boosting the demand for antennas in the phone segment. Antenna vendors are working hard to perfect the use of smart antenna constructs across power values, operating distances, and frequency ranges while the telecom industry waits for 5G.

North America is Expected to Have a Major Market Share

• North America has high penetration rates of devices, such as smartphones, wearables, tablets, laptops, and other consumer electronic devices embedded with communication technologies. For instance, according to Cisco, the region's average number of devices and connections per capita in 2018 stood at 8.2. It is expected to reach 13.4 by 2023, which is the highest in the world and almost three times that of the global average. ​
• In addition, the region has the highest mobile subscriber as a percentage of the regional population, which stood at 86% in 2018 and is expected to reach 88% by 2023. Also, the region has the highest laptop penetration rates in the world, with Dell, HP, and Lenovo commanding the top shares of the market in that respective order. ​
• For wearables, the region currently boasts a prominent share of the global demand and sales, with major vendors increasingly focusing on offering their products in the region. For instance, in 2020, smartwatch device unit sales in the United States reached around 22.6 million units, according to the Consumer Technology Association. Also, according to Cisco, the number of wearables in the North American region is increasing, which is expected to reach 439 million in 2022. ​
• Owing to such a dominant demand share in the region, major OEMs that offer consumer electronics are focusing on the region. With the high penetration of 4G capable devices in the region, FPC, LDS, and LCP are expected to command significant shares with the growth in demand for MPI and LCP materials gaining traction, owing to growing consumer propensity towards 5G capable devices. ​
• Prominent chipset vendors, such as Qualcomm, are increasingly developing antennas for enabling 5G capabilities in mobile devices, with the region expected to see the first releases and commercialization of the technology. For instance, in August 2020, tests of 5G downlink speed in the United States by Ookla showed that smartphones that used 5G millimeter wave bands achieved fast downlinks by 20 times that of 4G LTE.
• With the sheer number of devices growing in households, the demand for dual-channel antennas that offer connectivity solutions with technologies such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi is expected to grow as well, in turn augmenting the demand for antennas. For this, the demand for stamped metal antennas, FPC antennas, and antennas that support multiple protocols is expected to gain traction in the region. ​
• With the increasing demand for wireless protocols and antennas that work on ZigBee, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi-based devices in the smart segment in the region, the demand for antennas that offer these protocols and connectivity is expected to be favored from the segment over the forecasted period. ​

Competitive Landscape

The Global Antenna Market is highly competitive, with many major players. Manufacturers use product differentiation to gain a competitive advantage.

• March 2022 - Doosan Corporation is extending into the 5G antenna module market in collaboration with Movandi Corporation. It has fulfilled an initial order of 5G mmWave 28 GHz beamforming antenna modules from FRTek, a manufacturer of telecommunication smart repeaters. The modules are a key component of Movandi's BeamX beam forming antenna technology-based 5G wireless repeaters. They provide integrated solutions that include functions such as signal transmission and reception and frequency conversion.
• September 2021 - Corning teamed with AT&T. The two companies will collaborate to expand fiber infrastructure investments, expand broadband networks in the United States, and accelerate 5G deployment. Corning will invest USD 150 million in optical cable manufacturing in North Carolina as part of AT&T's long-term commitment to network expansion.

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