Argus Insights, a research company that studies consumer chatter around certain topics or products, recently released new findings for the software-defined networking (SDN) and network functions virtualization (NFV) market.

Los Gatos, Calif.-based Argus, launched in 2009, uses mindshare metrics and data to predict how a product or brand will fare within a given market. A sampling of customers include Best Buy, Proctor & Gamble, Samsung, and Acer.

Looking at social media, blogs, and other online points, Argus finds relevant consumer data, runs it through highly tuned algorithms, pinpoints customer trends, and then hands it off to clients so they can figure out how to take action for their organizations and products. This action can include better product creation, more impactful launches and announcements, competitor analysis, events with stronger reach, or improvements to analyst relations.

The results are intriguing, not because they shed light on who should be your SDN or NFV provider or even who has the best SDN and NFV products, but because they show which companies and topics are driving the SDN and NFV conversation. What Argus is tracking isn't just brand information, but how consumers digest and discuss that information.

"We are measuring interactions," says CEO John Feland. "It's not the tech race we're measuring, it's the mindshare. If people don't know what you're doing, how can you expect to reach them?"

So, how did your favorite SDN companies do?

Although the conversation around Oracle was the most positive, Argus' results showed Brocade as one of its "winners" in the SDN and NFV space. Cisco, Mirantis, Red Hat, and HP didn't fall far behind. Argus points to Brocade's "free SDN for one year" offer as a major point shared amongst consumers, and said the push for SDN to be open and widely adopted "is definitely creating interest in their SDN efforts."

Nokia and SK Telecom — the "losers" — fell low on the chart due to positioning that was unable to grab attention from enterprise decision makers. With little buzz and conversation surrounding the two, their impact is notably less than Brocade's.

Feland says the ability to track, process, and take action with these metrics is key to capitalizing on investments in the SDN and NFV market. "These metrics are reflective of adoption," he says. "We see what the market is doing before the market reacts."

Experience allows Argus to note what actions will result in an uptick, and its metrics help clients prioritize their responses, he adds.