The spot for top supplier of video management software (VMS) for the year 2012, as rated by IHS Inc., is shared by two companies this time. The leading information and analytics company IHS Inc. began rating VMS companies in 2004. Since then, the Copenhagen-based Milestone Systems has been the winner of the top spot every time. Nine years later, in 2012, the company still retains its top position. Only this time, it has to share the position with Montreal-based Genetec.
This is the first time two companies share the coveted spot. Milestone systems has been the reigning top contender for almost a decade now, and holds a strong grip over the VMS market in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). Lars Thinggaard, President and CEO of Milestone Systems, says that their vision is to add value to the customers and industry alike by achieving the convergence of IP-based surveillance systems and access control.
Competition is healthy, spurring continued commitments to improvements that benefit the customers and the providers themselves. Look at what this means for the industry: The top players have all grown their revenue, which shows that user demand for IP solutions is very strong,” says Thinggaard.
Canada-based Genetec, on the other hand, believes that innovative technology solutions for the end user are what has brought Genetec so far on the road to success. Genetec remains the top VMS for the Americas.
Innovation is in our DNA,” said Pierre Racz, President & CEO of Genetec. “We believe that the key to success is to invent new technologies that will help our customers today and tomorrow. By investingover 20 percent of our revenue in R&D, we foster a strong culture of innovation. From pioneering IP video, to developing the industry’s first unified security platform that combines video, access control, and license plate recognition, to bringing physical security to the Cloud, we are consistently delivering groundbreaking solutions to our industry.”
Having been valued at $650 million in 2012, the global VMS market for video surveillance and CCTV is forecasted to generate revenues of more than $1.6 billion by 2017. A very strong double-digit expansion is expected over the next five years in regions all over the world. As of now, though, the VMS market remains highly fragmented, and no individual supplier manages to hold a share greater than 10%. This space will continue to remain extremely competitive over the next five years, and the constant influx of new entrants will continue to maintain the emergence of newer technologies, and effective pricing strategies will continue to be the key variables for capturing the market.
Video management software is an integral part of and surveillance, and the impetus for the coming years will remain on making them more convenient and user-friendly. With the market progress projected at a high level, however, things sure continue to look good for customers.
Zach Jefferson
Author – Zach has six years under his belt as a marketing manager within the home security industry. He is in charge of keeping site information as accurate as possible, while developing new content ideas for consumers.