Between 2008 and 2013 the growth of the IP storage protocol market could have a compound annual increase of 66.7% according to the latest market study conducted by IMS Research.
The IP SAN (Internet Protocol Storage Area Network) could be the new player within the security industry, specifically in terms of video surveillance, since its scalability, flexibility and economy is giving new shape to the eco-amacenamiento system.
Traditionally the industry has used COTS (commercial off-the-shelf) servers or NVR's to record video, these devices have been successful because they are relatively cheap and scalable, also because additional storage equipment can be added to the network; however, COTS servers are generally not optimized for video surveillance.
In the case of analog storage solutions, these involve recording video to a DVR and, if necessary, expanding the vertical external storage capacity. The biggest drawback of using DVRs is that there are limitations on the number of cameras that can be stored in a single unit, so many of these installations are expected to migrate to IP.
According to IMS Research, the IP SAN will be the fastest growing solution on the market for companies and for the storage used in video surveillance, since this protocol is used to expand the capacity offered by COTS servers, and provides IT features. This protocol is cheaper and can be used to replace COTS servers and NVRs because IP SAN providers have incorporated the server running the VMS, creating a single box device.
William Rhodes, an analyst at IMS Research, says the video storage market is growing, which is why end users are demanding more storage capacity to cope with higher-resolution cameras, as well as the threat of crime that has always been present. "The security market has always been served by video surveillance companies, but in recent years, more and more IT storage companies have entered this niche," he says.
