Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s acquisition of Juniper Networks is reshaping the competitive landscape in the campus Ethernet switching market, with new analysis showing the combined business now effectively tied with Huawei for the second-largest global market share.
According to Dell’Oro Group’s latest Campus Ethernet Switch Report, HPE–Juniper’s campus switching revenue in the third quarter of 2025 grew faster than the overall market, narrowing the gap with long-time challenger Huawei. Both vendors reported nearly identical revenue levels for the quarter, signalling a tightening race behind market leader Cisco.
“The combined HPE–Juniper entity grew campus switch revenue above the market rate,” said Siân Morgan, research director at Dell’Oro Group. “HPE’s 3Q 2025 campus switch revenues are virtually identical to Huawei’s, foreshadowing an intense battle in upcoming quarters.”
The consolidation comes at a pivotal moment for the sector, as major vendors compete for what Dell’Oro describes as a multibillion-dollar “refresh opportunity” tied to Cisco equipment. While Cisco continues to secure the majority of those upgrades, rivals are actively targeting the opportunity by emphasising newer silicon, power-efficient hardware and AI-driven network operations features.
“Cisco is doing a great job converting those deals, but there is still a significant number of ports out there to be replaced,” Morgan said. “Competitors are chasing the opportunity by touting high-performance hardware and AIOps features.”
Other findings from Dell’Oro’s Q3 2025 report include:
- Revenues from China contracted sharply, although Huawei still managed to gain global market share.
- Average port prices fell for the seventh consecutive quarter, even as multi-gigabit port shipments increased.
- Cisco’s refresh opportunity spans multiple switch categories, which Dell’Oro says is influencing competitive strategies across the market.
The campus switching market remains a key battleground for enterprise networking vendors as organisations modernise networks for hybrid work, Wi-Fi 7 adoption and AI-driven management platforms.
