6/12/2006 -- If market watcher In-Stat is right, the future -- for Ethernet switching giant Cisco Systems Inc., anyway -- will ape the lyrics of a Timbuk 3 tune: Things are going great, and they're only getting better. In other words, In-Stat researchers say, the Ethernet switching outlook is so bright that Cisco Chairman and CEO John Chambers might one day have to wear shades.

In-Stat expects the Ethernet switching market to top $17.7 billion by 2009 -- and that's in spite of the fact that average selling prices continue to decline (by 19 percent last year, for example). This decline was offset to some extent by strong sales of 10 Gigabit Ethernet switches, which In-Stat says will continue to be red-hot performers through 2010. Over the same period, In-Stat researchers say, total Layer 2/3/4-7 switch revenues will rise from $14.9 billion last to $17.7 billion in 2009. In case you left your calculator at home, that's near 19 percent growth.

"With growing demand for streaming video, Voice over IP, high-end multimedia, medical imaging and other bandwidth-intensive applications, Ethernet continues to evolve to remain the standard networking technology," said In-Stat analyst Pamela Tufegdzic, in a statement.

Elsewhere, In-Stat found, Gigabit Ethernet Layer 2/3 devices are the "middle-of-the-road" switch of choice in today's market: Layer 2/3 GigE devices posted solid growth in 2005. Fast Ethernet port shipments continue to grow, In-Stat says, but revenues will continue to decline, in large part because of falling average selling prices. Falling average selling prices won't necessarily trigger an explosion of Fast Ethernet revenues, however: While 100BASE ports have become extremely cheap, In-Stat says they won't be able to support all the demands of the future. -Stephen Swoyer