There is a saying, “Good things come in threes,” and this also applies to the fiber broadband market. Gerlas van den Hoven, CEO of Genexis, reflects on three areas: what happened in the market during 2024, significant achievements from Genexis, and what we can expect from the broadband market in 2025.
Three highlights from 2024
Among all the industry events and discussions with peers, partners, and communications service providers (CSPs), we have identified three central themes that dominate and will spill over into 2025. Why are they important? They impact the speed of fiber expansion and adoption and indicate where market players are heading. These themes are:
- Moving beyond 1G: While 10 Gbit/s technology is already available, 2024 was the year that signified the transition to the real adoption of more than 1G speeds. One case is our customer, Reykjavík Fibre Network. We have seen operators move to 2.5G and 10G speeds.
- Wi-Fi 7 momentum: The Wi-Fi Alliance introduced the Wi-Fi 7 Certified seal early in 2024, and Wi-Fi 7 products are gaining traction. More than 233 million devices were expected to enter the market in 2024, growing to 2.1 billion devices by 2028. Wi-Fi 7 capabilities include faster speeds, lower latency, and enhanced capacity for high-bandwidth applications like augmented, virtual, and extended reality (AR/VR/XR), ultra-high-definition video streaming, industrial IoT, and more.
- Increased industry consolidation: Mergers, acquisitions, and alternative network providers (AltNets) play a significant role in expanding high-speed broadband access. Notable deals include Verizon’s acquisition of Frontier Communications in the US and the merger of two AltNets in the UK, Netomnia and Brsk.
Genexis 2024: awards, gold, and growth
2024 was also a year of advancement for Genexis as we launched several products and achieved key milestones. I am really proud to share some accomplishments, including:
- Innovation recognition: We won the FTTH Council Europe Innovation Awards in two categories! The first award was for TrueTalk™ PON autosensing software, which allows seamless connectivity across multiple Optical Line Terminals (OLTs) and automatically adjusts Genexis’ Optical Network Terminals (ONTs) to network settings. This innovation reduces storage, labor, transportation, and training costs while enabling seamless network interoperability and lower operational costs. The second award recognizes IOWRT, our open-source software platform, providing CSPs unparalleled flexibility to separate software from residential gateway hardware.
- Sustainability leadership: For the second consecutive year, Genexis was awarded a Gold Medal from EcoVadis, placing us in the top two percent of our industry for sustainable practices. This shows our continued commitment to sustainability as an integral part of our business strategy and positions us as a frontrunner in the industry.
- North American expansion: We continue to grow in the North American market, including four strategic partnerships with Titan Telecom International, RocNet Network Supply, EPS Global, and ClearCable Networks. We established Genexis Broadband LLC, achieved FCC certification for our Active Ethernet (Point-to-Point) and XGS-PON portfolios, built a team, and hired a senior U.S. advisor. This will enable us better to serve the needs of CSPs and end users and shape the future of fiber broadband in North America.
Three trends for 2025
The key themes from 2024 will continue into 2025; here are some additional topics we will see more of:
- Moving sustainability and social aspects to the forefront
Our industry will focus more on reducing power consumption, using recyclable materials, prolonging product lifecycles by repurposing hardware, and reporting our industry’s climate footprint. Sustainability is already integral to Genexis’s overall strategy, and we are committed to being NetZero by 2050. We work proactively to minimize our environmental impact, lead the industry, and design our products, focusing on circularity and using up to 90% recycled plastics. On the social front, we provide jobs to people who are distanced from entering the job market. They might have long absences of unemployment or disabilities. At our warehouse in Bladel, Netherlands, we cooperate with an organization to employ more than 50 people to help them re-enter the workforce.
- Capitalizing on data and AI to improve user experience
At the same time, as fiber networks expand and adoption increases, millions of users have different needs. By leveraging data insights and artificial intelligence to analyze user behavior, preferences, and network performance, services can be optimized and customized to offer an even better quality of experience.
- Strengthening cyber resilience
Developing robust cybersecurity is regulatory and increasingly demanded by end users. The Network and Information Systems 2 (NIS2) Directive and Cyber Resilience Act provide guidelines on how European countries strengthen critical infrastructure security and essential services. We have recently outlined the current status of NIS2. For years to come, we will see continued focus on cybersecurity on several levels and across our industry. and
Our commitment
As we look towards 2025, Genexis is committed to meeting the needs of our operator customers and solution partners. By developing the industry together, we can create sustainable and innovative products and solutions, collaborate with partners, and fully engage in industry alliances and organizations to bring the world to everyone’s home!
