Dubai, March 26, 2013

The Middle East and Africa (MEA) security appliance market recorded year-on-year growth in both customer revenue and shipments in the final quarter of 2012, according to the latest figures released today by International Data Corporation (IDC), the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. IDC's 'Worldwide Quarterly Security Appliance Tracker', showed that customer revenues were up 8.3% when compared to Q4 2011 to reach $90.79 million, while shipments increased 9.4% over the same period to total 20,754 units.

The UAE and Saudi Arabia were the key drivers of the region's growth in customer revenue, recording year-on-year increases of 20% and 16%, respectievly. Faysal Ayoubi, a research analyst at IDC Middle East, Africa, and Turkey, believes the expansion of the security appliance market can also be attributed to a noticeable shift in the attitudes of organizations across the region. "The continous growth of threats targeting the Middle East region has resulted in organizations becoming more aware of the importance of securing their networks," he says. "Consequently, they are prioritizing budgets towards ensuring the highest levels of risk mitigation possible."

Unified threat management (UTM) was the leading security function in the final quarter of 2012, contributing significantly to the MEA market's high single-digit growth. UTM revenues increased 20% year on year to account for 37% share of the total security appliance market in Q4 2012, with unified security solutions continuing to be particularly popular among small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).

Cisco maintained its lead of the overall MEA security appliance market in Q4 2012, depsite seeing its share of customer revenue fall by 3 percentage points, year on year, to 20%. Fortinet secured second spot with 15% share of total sales, having recorded tremendous double-digit growth in customer revenue of 36% when compared to Q4 2011.

"The seasonality of the fourth quarter, coupled with numerous government deals, helped most vendors advance year on year," says Ayoubi. "End-of-year initiatives on the vendor side and the traditional budget flush on the buyer side were also key factors behind the region's growth." The combined shares of the top five vendors accounted for 60% of the market in Q4 2012, down 2.5 percentage points on the final quarter of 2011. Other vendors that witnessed a strong quarter included WatchGuard, Websense, and Sourcefire.

The outlook for the MEA security appliance market remains positive, according to Ayoubi. "The fourth quarter of 2012 was a promising one for the overall market, enabling most vendors to finish the year in style," he says. "And IDC expects the region's IT security appliance market to continue expanding over the coming quarters as it strives to meet constantly growing end-user demand, particularly from SMBs and government entities."

IDC's 'Worldwide Quarterly Security Appliance Tracker' is a quantitative tool for analyzing the global security market on a quarterly basis and is available on demand. The Tracker includes quarterly shipment and revenue data (both customer and factory), segmented by vendor, family, model, region, operating system, price band, and security function. For more information, please contact Faysal Ayoubi at IDC Middle East, Africa, and Turkey on +971 4 391 2746 or at fayoubi@idc.com.

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About IDC Trackers
IDC's Tracker products provide accurate and timely market size, vendor share, and forecast data for hundreds of technology markets from more than 100 countries around the globe. Using proprietary tools and research processes, IDC's Trackers are updated on a semiannual, quarterly, and monthly basis. Tracker results are delivered to clients in user-friendly excel deliverables and on-line query tools. The IDC Tracker Charts app, available at iTunes, allows users to view data charts from the most recent IDC Tracker products on their iPhone and iPad.

About IDC
International Data Corporation (IDC) is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. IDC helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment community make fact-based decisions on technology purchases and business strategy. More than 1,000 IDC analysts provide global, regional, and local expertise on technology and industry opportunities and trends in over 110 countries worldwide. For more than 48 years, IDC has provided strategic insights to help our clients achieve their key business objectives. IDC is a subsidiary of IDG, the world's leading technology media, research, and events company. You can learn more about IDC by visiting www.idc.com.

IDC in the Middle East, Africa, and Turkey
For the Middle East, Africa, and Turkey region, IDC retains a coordinated network of offices in Riyadh, Casablanca, Nairobi, Lagos, Johannesburg, and Istanbul, with a regional center in Dubai. Further expansion plans for 2013 include the opening of an additional office in Cairo. Our coverage couples local insight with an international perspective to provide a comprehensive understanding of markets in these dynamic regions. Our market intelligence services are unparalleled in depth, consistency, scope, and accuracy. IDC Middle East, Africa, and Turkey currently fields over 125 analysts, consultants, and conference associates across the region.

© Press Release 2013