With the recession impacting spending in both the public and private sectors around the globe, security manufacturers have placed an increased emphasis on getting their products in front of buyers in emerging markets. One of the biggest emerging markets for security products is Latin America, which includes the countries of South America, Central America and the Caribbean.
According to IMS Research Market Analyst Oliver Philippou, the video surveillance market for Latin America is forecast to grow at a compound annual growth rate of around 20 percent for the next five years. Philippou said that among the key growth drivers for video surveillance in the region is a continued reduction in the price of network surveillance equipment and the large number of infrastructure, transportation and city surveillance projects being undertaken by many Latin American countries.
Last month, Samsung announced that it had entered into a new partnership with Precision Trading Corp. to distribute the company’s security and surveillance products in the region. Pedro Duarte, vice president for Latin America at Samsung, said the company has seen "aggressive growth" in the market over the last three years. Samsung currently has six offices that serve the market (Brazil, Chile, Peru, Columbia, Mexico, and Miami) and ranks third in market share in the region, according to Duarte.
"With the economical uncertainty in other regions in the world, we see several investments going in the direction of Latin America. This includes investments on infrastructure projects, as well as a strong development of industrial and retail companies establishing a foothold in the territory," he said.
Video appliance maker Intransa is also making a push into the market as the company announced as recently as this week that it has entered into a distribution partnership with ScanSource Latin America to sell its products in the region.
Brazil alone, which will play host to the 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 Summer Olympics, is expected to have an enormous impact on the market for security equipment in the region. According to a newly released report from the Security Industry Association, the market for electronic security equipment in Brazil, which currently stands at $592 million, is expected to more than triple to $1.8 billion by 2017. This $1.8 billion market will primarily consist of video surveillance equipment (39.6 percent), followed by access control (20.8 percent), intrusion detection (19.2 percent), fire detection and suppression (10.4 percent), and electronic article surveillance (10 percent).
Despite the impact of the World Cup and the Olympics, Philippou said that the video surveillance market in Brazil was already projected to see substantial growth.
"The 2016 Olympics and 2014 FIFA World Cup will provide an increase for Brazil in these years, however, it is key to remember that Brazil’s video surveillance market was already forecast to grow at around 20 percent," he said.
Aside from Brazil, Philippou said that Mexico, Argentina and Colombia will also be big markets for video surveillance in the region. Duarte said that he’s also seen consistent growth in Chile and Peru.
Philippou said that the industry can expect to see more Latin America distribution partnerships announced by companies in the months and years ahead.
"Several video surveillance companies are planning expansion plans into the region," he said. "As the vast majority of product is sold through distribution, it is likely that new distribution agreements will be made."
