Everything's changed, and everything's stayed the same - The Antenna - Brief Article

Electronic News, August 19, 2002

WATCHING THE MASS EXODUS OF WORLD COMMUNICATIONS components suppliers from the optical space, one's inclined to think that the need for greater capacity and speed across the network, which only optics can truly provide, has somehow disappeared. Those of you who've had the misfortune of accessing the Net via dial-up recently know that many times that is not the case.

"All that's changed. You can try to say, well everything has changed, but all that's changed is the current financial climate," says Roy Rubinstein, senior analyst for semiconductors and optical components at RHK Ltd. "Yes, there's a lot of companies losing money and seriously in debt. And yes, that handicaps them; they are being extremely cautious." For an idea of just how cautious, see "Agere Exits Optoelectronics" on page 1.

But Rubinstein says the companies who are jumping in, such as Intel, are doing the right thing, too.

"The current climate doesn't change the fundamentals," he says. The world will need to use light to transport how much data it needs to transport. Data traffic is still growing at 85 percent a year, Rubinstein says.