Milestone tops marketshare for IP video surveillance software

Dec. 3, 2008
Company's standing based on IMS Research report

Denmark-based Milestone Systems landed the number one spot from IMS Research as the global market leader of IP video surveillance software. The team from IMS Research recently published a report on world market share for software- only network video management solutions as part of its report, "The World Market for CCTV and Video Surveillance Equipment." The IMS report was issued in November 2008.

Milestone's software, marketed as the XProtect line of video management solutions, can be sold as software-only to run on networked servers, but the software is also OEMed inside a variety of NVRs from other manufacturers.

According to IMS Research, the world market for video surveillance was expected to grow 13.4 percent per year for the next five years. In 2007, IMS estimated that the market was worth $7.66 billion; based on the expected growth, the world market would be at $14.35 billion by 2012. The researchers expected much of that growth to come from the area of networked/IP video surveillance, since analog CCTV was expected to only see about 5.9 percent growth in that time period. Over the same time, IP video surveillance software sales are expected to grow from $236.2 million in 2007 to over $1 billion in 2012.

Simon Harris, the senior analyst at IMS Research who produced the report, forecasts long-term gains for network video solutions as the industry moves beyond the analog-and-coax of traditional systems. He said the market conditions will affect many companies in video surveillance, but he didn't expect those conditions to choke off all growth.

"The economic downturn will have negative impact in some market verticals, but overall market growth is expected to remain at a solid level," said Harris. "Our research concludes that the market for IP video surveillance management software will remain very strong, and Milestone Systems has an opportunity to further strengthen its market position.”

While some CCTV companies are suffering, Milestone reports that its annual growth rates have been in the 40-60 percent range, year over year. The company received an additional funding investment this year from Index Ventures, aiding what the company calls its "strong foundation." The company has recently added support for video analytics, including an integrated license plate recognition module, and has continued to roll out update versions of its XProtect video management software.