EMEA Purpose-Built Backup Appliances Return to Growth in 1Q18

EMEA Purpose-Built Backup Appliances Return to Growth in 1Q18
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EMEA purpose-built backup appliance (PBBA) vendor revenues increased 24.8% year over year to reach $243.2 million in the first quarter of 2018, according to IDC. Total EMEA PBBA open systems vendor revenue increased 29.3% year on year, with revenues of $234.8 million. Mainframe system sales decreased 36% year on year in 1Q18.

Vendor revenue in Western Europe increased 19.5% year on year in 1Q18 to $181.6 million. This growth came mainly from open integrated systems, which reported a 39.4% rise year on year. There was robust PBBA spending in France and the U.K., with year-on-year growth of 56.6% and 30.1% respectively.

The PBBA market was particularly strong in Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (CEMA) in 1Q18, showing an increase of 46.1% in vendor revenue compared with the same period a year ago. This growth came on the back of open target systems, as most vendors recorded double-digit increases in this segment.

At a subregional level, both Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and the Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew in revenue, but MEA was the main driver, with a 64.2% share of a nearly $57 million CEMA market. This came from datacenter optimization projects and the growth in initial datacenter investments in more advanced data management and storage solutions, as well as GDPR enforcement in Europe.

"As GDPR came into force in May, the reality is that many organizations are still not compliant," said Marina Kostova, research manager, IDC CEMA. "The investments in backup and recovery are not only part of a long-planned strategy but are also fast 'backup' solutions for many end users trying to catch up with the deadline.