Surveillance servers

United States – Hopes remain high for the video surveillance market, with revenues predicted to zoom up to $46 billion in 2013 from just $13.5 billion in 2006. The huge leap represents an average annual revenue growth of about $4.6 billion, based on projections by ABI Research. The video surveillance market includes surveillance cameras, computers and storage, professional services and hardware infrastructure.

According to the report “Video Surveillance Systems,” the diversity of applications will be the main growth driver, as video surveillance systems are increasingly being used in various vertical markets such as retail, education, banking, transportation and corporate business.

However, applications are not limited to security. For instance, facial recognition software is now being used to track shoppers’ eyeball movements in retail shops as they look at products on display, collecting useable data on shoppers’ behavior.

Since the video surveillance industry is going digital, the shift is bringing with it both analog and digital devices, creating bigger opportunities for security vendors and buyers.

According to ABI Research vice president and research director Stan Schatt, the phenomenon is reminiscent of the California gold rush, except that people are armed with cameras instead of pickaxes and shovels.

The biggest installed base of video surveillance is in Europe, with some 4.1 million units of surveillance cameras deployed in the region, the report said. But large deployments are also happening in North America and China, in preparation for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

However, Schatt said that while digital technology has a clear advantage over analog systems—higher resolution, more efficient storage, easier search and retrieval—there remain a number of traditional security suppliers who are not totally comfortable with shifting to full digital implementation. Widespread training is thus recommended, he said.