Converged systems market explodes in Q1

FlexPod, VCE and EMC lead the charge as integrated storage, network and compute wares gain traction

The converged systems market grew almost 40 per cent in 2014's opening quarter, research has claimed.

IDC figures reveal that worldwide sales of integrated server, storage and networking technology expanded 38.5 per cent year on year in Q1 to $1.95bn (£1.14bn). The analyst divides the market into two segments: integrated platforms; and integrated infrastructure. The former is defined as hardware, packaged with software and development and integration tools, while the latter is more all-purpose hardware without the same customisation.

Oracle is the runaway leader in the integrated platform arena, holding a 48 per cent share of a market that was worth $769.6m globally in Q1. IBM is a fairly distant second with 9.7 per cent market share, ahead of third-placed HP with two per cent. A vast array of smaller competitors comprise the remaining 40.4 per cent.

The integrated infrastructure segment is bigger and growing much more quickly – 69.4 per cent year on year in Q1, compared with just 8.3 per cent growth in integrated platforms. Worldwide revenue in 2014's first three months totalled almost $1.2bn.

Cisco-based technology dominates, with market leader FlexPod accounting for 22.7 per cent of sales in Q1, ahead of VCE on 21.5 per cent. Third-placed EMC, with 15.2 per cent market share, has gained ground at the top two's expense. The storage giant more than doubled its sales in Q1, compared with growth of 49.8 and 43.8 per cent for FlexPod and VCE respectively. Below EMC, smaller players account for 40.5 per cent of revenue.

Eric Sheppard, IDC's storage research director, said: "Once again we witnessed an increasing number of organisations around the world leveraging integrated systems to address long-standing datacentre infrastructure inefficiencies. As such, this market remains one of the fastest-growing segments of the overall infrastructure market."