The video surveillance market in the Asia Pacific has benefited greatly from the recent economic pressures, with companies having to resort to technology to cut costs and reduce staff strength. Security vendors have begun to realize that the one-time charge of installing a camera is far less than the salaries and benefits that will have to be paid to a guard.
The video surveillance market in the Asia Pacific has benefited greatly from the recent economic pressures, with companies having to resort to technology to cut costs and reduce staff strength. Security vendors have begun to realize that the one-time charge of installing a camera is far less than the salaries and benefits that will have to be paid to a guard.
New analysis from Frost & Sullivan titled "Asia Pacific Video Surveillance Market" finds the market earned revenues of US$1.21 billion in 2008 and estimates this to reach $5.52 billion in 2015.
The companies that have not been convinced about the advantages of installing a network camera will be daunted by the high prices, which are currently 1.5 times higher than analog cameras. The prohibitive costs are a deterrent not just for businesses but also governments. However, this consumer apprehension is not expected to hold back the penetration of IP video surveillance in Asia, especially for major established brands.
"Technology improvements and standards such as H.264 are driving the growth of the network camera market by reducing storage and bandwidth requirements," said Parul Oswal, Frost & Sullivan Industry Analyst. "Other storage improvements driving video surveillance include solid-state drive (SSD), decentralized storage, and server virtualization."
Apart from technology improvements, the projected dip in the prices of network cameras are expected to narrow the pricing gap between IP and analog systems. The increasing presence of low-cost products from countries such as China and Taiwan will further drive down prices, as will the tough economic conditions that compel companies to offer competitive prices.
"The market has got another boost with the decline in the prices of hard disk drives (HDDs) over the past few years, which has enabled end users to enhance video recording infrastructure and increase the quality (frame rate) and capacity of video storage equipment," noted Oswal. "The end-user markets are also accepting of IP for security, as it has the ability to integrate with other technologies such as biometrics for access control and surveillance."
The video surveillance market has significant opportunities in the Asia Pacific, especially considering some of the market segments are mature, while some are still emerging.
To secure a competitive advantage, market participants should look to deliver superior customer service and technical support. They are helped along in their efforts to boost the adoption of surveillance by the decision of various governments to extend a stimulus package and expand infrastructure.