Software Defined Storage Market - Size, Share, Industry Trends, and Forecasts (2024 - 2031)

By Type:

Based on the type, the market is segmented into block storage, file storage, object storage, and others.

Trends in the types:

• Object storage is becoming increasingly popular in the software defined storage market due to its capability to manage unstructured data on a large scale.
• File storage is popular in the software defined storage market due to its ability to store data in a hierarchical structure.

The block storage segment accounted for the largest revenue share in the year 2023 and is anticipated to register the fastest CAGR during the forecast period.

• Block storage is engineered to play a crucial role in workloads that are sensitive to performance like databases and virtual machine storage, where low latency is essential.
• According to the analysis, many traditional enterprise applications depend on block storage for its ability to provide direct access to data blocks, facilitating efficient data manipulation and transaction processing.
• The surge in the need for reliable, high-performance storage, coupled with the cost-effectiveness and quick deployment capabilities of block storage, further contributed to its dominance in the market.
• In May 2023, NetApp launched new products including a modern block storage offering and a ransomware recovery guarantee. The new ASA (All-Flash SAN Array) A-Series family simplifies SAN infrastructure deployment, offers guaranteed availability and efficiency, and leads to cost savings.

By Component:

Based on the component, the market is bifurcated into platforms and services.

Trends in the component:

• The increasing need for professional and managed services to support the deployment and maintenance of software defined storage market solutions.

The services segment accounted for the largest revenue share in the year 2023 and is anticipated to register the fastest CAGR during the forecast period.

• This evolution is primarily driven by the rising adoption of cloud-based services like SaaS, IaaS, and PaaS, which help businesses streamline operations, cut IT infrastructure costs, and improve scalability.
• The shift from traditional on premise software licenses to flexible, scalable, and cost-effective subscription-based cloud services is also boosting the segment's revenue.
• The widespread use of SaaS applications such as CRM, ERP, and collaboration tools, along with the increasing software defined storage market demand for managed cloud services for tasks like cloud migration, optimization, and maintenance, are further contributing to the segment's progress.
• Additionally, the analysis shows that ongoing advancements in cloud technologies, including the integration of AI, machine learning, and edge computing, are fueling the cloud-based services and solutions, thereby driving the services segment.
• In April 2023, Quantum introduced Myriad, an all-flash file and object storage service that excels with the constraints of traditional NAS systems. Its cloud-native architecture, built on recent advancements in application frameworks and design, offers an easy-to-use solution that sidesteps the limitations of hardware-focused designs.
• Thus, the services segment is driving the software defined storage market trends due to its ability to handle the rising adoption of cloud-based services like SaaS, IaaS, and PaaS.

By Enterprise:

Based on the enterprise, the market is bifurcated into small and medium enterprises and large enterprises.

Trends in the enterprise:

• The rising demand for secure and reliable storage solutions that can support rigorous applications is prevailing in the banking and financial sectors.

The large enterprise segment accounted for the largest revenue share in the year 2023 and is anticipated to register the fastest CAGR during the forecast period.

• Large enterprises due to their larger IT budgets, which allow for the adoption of advanced storage solutions like software defined storage.
• Their focus on enhancing security compliance, increasing efficiency, reducing operating expenses and downtime, and accelerating time-to-market also contributed to this dominance.
• Additionally, as per the analysis, the industry's growing emphasis on automation, simplified management, data mobility, hybrid cloud adoption, and the need for flexible and scalable solutions further boosted the software defined storage market share of large enterprises.
• In May 2024, NetApp unveiled new AFF A-Series systems designed for the AI era, capable of powering IT workloads, including GenAI, VMware, and enterprise databases. Along with expanded capabilities across its portfolio, NetApp aims to enhance operational efficiency for customers using their data to foster innovation.
• As per the analysis of NetApp, successful AI implementation relies heavily on data (74%) and IT infrastructure (71%). NetApp's latest offerings aim to address these critical factors, providing an innovative intelligent data infrastructure that enables customers to harness their data's value with AI.
• Thus, the market analysis concludes that the large enterprise segment's growing emphasis on automation, simplified management, data mobility, and others is driving the market trends.

By End-User:

Based on the end-user, the market is segmented into IT & telecom, BFSI, logistics and warehouse, healthcare, media, and others.

Trends in the end-users:

• The market is driven by rapid industrialization, increased usage of cloud-based infrastructure, and substantial R&D investments from leading market players like NetApp Inc., IBM Corporation, and VMware Inc.

The BFSI accounted for the largest revenue share in the year 2023 and is anticipated to register the fastest CAGR during the forecast period.

• This is primarily due to the sector's massive data generation, stringent regulatory compliance requirements, need for cost efficiency, the importance of business continuity, and ongoing digital transformation efforts. These factors collectively contribute to the increased adoption of storage solutions in the BFSI sector.
• In February 2021, NTT Ltd announced that it is bolstering the IT infrastructure of a top-tier Indian bank by implementing its software defined infrastructure solutions. By integrating an SDS solution with the bank's existing private cloud, NTT has improved efficiencies within the virtualized environment, thereby facilitating business agility and more efficient resource allocation.
• Thus, the growing need for data management and processing in the BFSI sector is driving the market trends.

Regional Analysis:

The regions covered are North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa, and Latin America.

North America is estimated to reach over USD 38,047.48 Million by 2031 from a value of USD 5,351.80 Million in 2023 and is projected to grow by USD 6,742.72 Million in 2024. The software defined storage market growth is mainly driven by its deployment in data centers, cloud service providers, and telecommunication industries.

• In November 2021, DataCore Software the U.S. leading provider of SDS solutions, announced its acquisition of MayaData, the creator of OpenEBS and MayaStor. DataCore is capable of serving as a comprehensive resource for enterprise software-defined storage requirements, encompassing block, file, and object storage. MayaData stands to gain from DataCore's engineering process, patent collection, robust market presence, and distribution network.

Furthermore, factors including increased data generation, the need for cost-effective data management solutions, and the shift towards digitization are projected to drive the market in North America during the forecast period.

Asia Pacific region was valued at USD 3,810.81 Million in 2023. Moreover, it is projected to grow by USD 4,807.41 Million in 2024 and reach over USD 27,509.49 Million by 2031. Out of this, China accounted for the maximum revenue share of 33.7%.

The Asia Pacific region's growing increasing adoption of online payment offers lucrative growth prospects for the market. Additionally, the development of unstructured data stored in on premise and cloud-based storage is driving software defined storage market growth.

• In January 2021, the Reserve Bank of India, (RBI) developed a composite Digital Payments Index (DPI) to measure the level of digital payments across India. The index, which uses March 2018 as the base period with a DPI score of 100, showed significant development with scores of 153.47 and 207.84 for March 2019 and March 2020 respectively with the increasing DPI vast amount of data is generated which in turn requires an advance software defined storages for more secure, agile and data management issues.

As per the software defined storage market analysis, Europe is anticipated to witness substantial progress that is backed by the well-established information technology (IT) and automotive industries. Companies invest in innovative technologies to cater to the surging demand for software defined storage markets across the region.

The Middle East & African market is expected to show a moderate growth rate during the forecast period. The rise in cloud computing, investments in data centers, the growing telecom sector, and others are anticipated to drive the market.

The Latin American market depicts cumulative expansion in countries such as Brazil, Mexico, and others as there is growing adoption of e-commerce and digital payments as well as big data and analytics.