via satellite - june 2011

June 2011 The Leader in Global Communications Coverage

www.viasatellite.com

VIEW FROM THE TOP:Khalid Balkheyour, Arabsat

BROADCASTERS CORNER:Olivier Laouchez, Trace TV

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

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June/11 Vol. XXVI Number 06

CO

VE

R S

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Features18 | Maritime Becoming Prime Time

For Satellite Companies »MARK HOLMES With demands for bandwidth set to increase, satellite players are vying to

supply the crowded maritime sector with more effective communications

solutions, as shipping operators look to satellite to boost their performance.

22 | Universal Service Funds Look For Right Technology Mix »GIOVANNI VERL IN I Market forces alone might not be enough to attain universal service in the

broadband era. The satellite sector should endeavor to find its place in the

array of technologies supported by mechanisms like the U.S. Universal

Service Fund.

26 | Satellite Finds New Role

In IP World »GREG BERLOCHER The implementation of IP strategies is not new, but aside from a common

transmission protocol, what impact will the buildup of IP networks have on

the satellite sector?

OnlineWebinars On Demand

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For more information on upcoming

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TABLE OF CONTENTS


WHO READS Steven Corda, Vice President of Market Development for SES takes a moment

to read Via Satellite at NAB.

Departments

Editor’s Insight 8

View From The Top 10

Khalid Balkheyour, Arabsat

Industry Events 12

Broadcasters Corner 31

Olivier Laouchez, Trace TV

Industry At Large 32

Web Directory 36

The Marketplace 35

Advertiser Index 37

Columns14 | Global Regulations U.K. Space Strategy ConsultationGERRY OBERST

The U.K. government is conducting a consultation on what its civil space strat-

egy should be for the period 2011-2015. This consultation is important, and there

remains time to submit comments .

16 | Satellite Policies C-Band Small Aperture Terminals (CSAT)RAUL MAGALLANES

VSAT licenses in Ku-band have been used for a long time and provide what is popu-

larly called “blanket license” authority. Interestingly, there is an equivalent concept

in C-band, the C-band Small Aperture Terminal.

17 | Satellite Gets Personal The Great (Broadband) Leap ForwardMAX ENGEL

The world of satellite broadband is about to see the results of a revolution in satel-

lite capacity. In Europe, Ka-Sat is getting ready to enter service. In North America,

ViaSat-1 is expected to be launched before the end of 2011, and the Hughes Net-

work Systems’ Jupiter satellite is planned for launch early in 2012.

38 | Dollars and Sense Goodbye to the Space ShuttleOWEN KURT IN

The U.S. Space Shuttle program will come to a close this year, a little more than 30

years after its inaugural flight, with the last flight scheduled for late June. Always

a technological marvel and never an economic one, the shuttle reminds us of an-

other beautiful white bird now seen only in museums, the Concorde.

WHO READS

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JEFFREY HILL, News Editor, ext. 1805

JENNIFER NEWMAN, Copyeditor

Contributing Writers

OWEN KURTIN

GERALD E. OBERST, JR.

RAUL MAGALLANES

MAX ENGEL

AdvertisingJOE G. MILROY, Associate Publisher

215/489-0585

Design/Production

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MACY L. FECTO, Exec. Vice President, Human Resources & Administration

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STEVE BARBER, Vice President Financial Planning and Internal Audit

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EDITOR’S NOTE

The concept has been around for a while under the names

“secondary payloads” or “piggybacking,” but the first

mention of the phrase “hosted payload” in our publications

occurred in April 2007 in reference to a planned test of

providing IP services from orbit.

Intelsat 14 was placed in orbit in November 2009 carry-

ing the Internet Router in Space (IRIS) payload developed

by Cisco Systems. The payload was developed as part of

the U.S. Department of Defense’s Joint Capability Technol-

ogy Demonstration. The Pentagon completed its testing of

the payload in April 2010, and IRIS now is under control of

Cisco, which is looking to monetize the service.

This certainly was not the first hosted payload. Among

the examples listed by the Office of Space Commercial-

ization, part of the U.S. Department of Commerce, are

the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration’s Wide Area Aug-

mentation System, which involves transponders aboard

commercial communications satellites, and the U.S. Coast

Guard’s Nationwide Automatic Identification System, which

involves a demonstration payload on an Orbcomm satel-

lite. The SES-2 satellite, being developed to provide com-

mercial broadcasting services over the United States and

the Caribbean, also will carry the Commercially Hosted

Infrared Payload (CHIRP) sensor for the U.S. Air Force.

The U.S. government’s interest in hosted payloads is

growing due to a mix of budget cuts and growth in hosting

options. The history of the platform, however, is filled more

by missed opportunities than with successes. At SATEL-

LITE 2010, a U.S. government official cited 18 commercial

satellites under production that could have carried gov-

ernment payloads, but because the government had no

official policy on hosted payloads, only one opportunity

was being used.

That number of missed opportunities is expected to

increase in the coming years as satellite constellations

such as Iridium Next join commercial geostationary space-

craft as options for those seeking to place a hosted pay-

load into space.

In March, seven of the satellite sector’s biggest compa-

nies formed the Hosted Payload Alliance. The group, which

includes Intelsat and SES along with Iridium, Boeing, Lock-

heed Martin, Orbital Sciences and Space Systems/Loral,

will promote the potential benefits of hosted government

payloads on commercial satellites.

Meanwhile, the interest on the government side was rein-

vigorated by a call in the 2010 U.S. National Space Policy

for public-private partnerships to fill government satellite

gaps. In April, NASA issued a solicitation for studies out-

lining commercial solutions to distribute data for future

NASA payloads on commercial communications satellites.

In the solicitation, the agency says, “The process of devel-

oping and operating the payload within the constraints of

the hosted payload process is a new development method

for NASA. The distribution of the payload data in real-time,

or near real-time, over commercial networks is also a new

operational concept for NASA.”

And in an April speech on space programs in Washing-

ton, D.C., Ashton Carter, the Pentagon’s undersecretary

of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics, told

the audience that “cost projections for these are just not

affordable,” and cited hosted payloads as an option for

the future.

Interest in hosted payloads is growing, and government

and commercial interests look to be lining up for a jump

in this market in the coming years.

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VIEW FROM THE TOP

Khalid BalkheyourCEO, Arabsat

Arabsat, one of the main players

on the satellite landscape in the

Middle East and Africa, is looking

into hosted payloads while also

continuing rollouts of new capacity.

Arabsat CEO Khalid Balkheyour

outlines the operator’s plans for

hosted payloads as well as the

possibilities in residential broadband

markets throughout the Middle East

and Africa.

VIA SATELLITE: When will you announce

any hosted payload deals?

BALKHEYOUR: We think hosted pay-

loads will be a viable way to grow in

the next period for Arabsat. At the

same time, we are not only looking

for partnerships, but we are looking

for new orbital locations and new co-

operation opportunities neighboring

to our region. We are looking for part-

nerships with government entities. Ini-

tially, we were hoping to sign a hosted

payload deal at the end of last year.

However, with government organiza-

tions, it takes more time than expect-

ed, so, hopefully, we will reach this

type of deal in 2011.

VIA SATELLITE: Will your company pur-

sue other hosted payload opportunities

this year?

BALKHEYOUR: If things go as we

plan, we hope to announce another

one next year. This would be the first

for the Middle East. We haven’t seen

a hosted payload program involving

two different organizations in the

Middle East, so we are looking for a

deal where Arabsat would use some

of the payload and another organiza-

tion would use the rest. There is no

stipulation in terms of the division of

the payload right now.

VIA SATELLITE: What is the state of your

capacity expansion plans?

BALKHEYOUR: We launched two sat-

ellites in June last year — Arabsat 5A

and BADR 5 — and both of those satel-

lites are almost fully utilized. We are

happy with those successful launch-

es. This year, we are launching the

Arabsat 5C satellite in the August/

September timeframe. That satellite

will be launched at the 20 degrees

East orbital location. It will have a

Ka-band payload covering the Arab

Peninsula, Iraq, Levant and Afghani-

stan. It will be the first of its kind in the

region to be commercially available.

We are introducing this technology in

the region, and there is a challenge in

terms of getting licenses and partners

to utilize that payload. It is going to be

a busy year for us trying to sell that

capacity in addition to a significant

C-band payload that is covering the

Middle East, Europe, Africa and West

Asia regions.

VIA SATELLITE: Last year, you said that

you hoped to sign a signature Ka-band sat-

ellite contract with a telecoms operator in

late 2010. Are you close to this deal?

BALKHEYOUR: We have seen that

there are a number of entities inter-

ested in this payload, so we request-

ed from the interested companies to

submit their proposals based on their

business plan and their proposed form

of utilizing this capacity with or with-

out Arabsat involvement or partner-

ship with Arabsat to deliver services

based on Ka-band. We have received

all the offers, and are now evaluating

the different partners, but we aim to

close this later this month. We expect

to announce a major partnership in

the next month with a major telco/

ISP here.

VIA SATELLITE: Are the dynamics favor-

able for residential satellite broadband in

the Middle East?

BALKHEYOUR: Yes, because the ter-

restrial infrastructures are not mature

enough as they are in Europe and the

rest of the world. Additionally, you

have to consider licensing difficulties

in the region and getting the approvals

needed to offer these types of services

in the region. It is not one country like

the United States or Canada. It is not

like the European Union. Here, each

country has its own regulations. It may

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View From The Top


delay the introduction of these services

in the region. I would expect satellite

broadband could have an impact in the

Gulf region. It could have an impact in

somewhere like Libya if things calm

down. You have countries like Alge-

ria and Egypt where there could be a

demand for these services.

VIA SATELLITE: Would you consider

SpaceX as a launch vehicle option?

BALKHEYOUR: We usually like to see

technology in this area matured before

we go with it. We are pretty cautious

here. We are risk averse. If it is proven

technology, we will, of course, consid-

er it, but we will not be at the front-

end until we see it arrive. We would

not look to someone like SpaceX for

a good two to three years, because we

have few satellites and cannot afford

to take the risk.

VIA SATELLITE: Did you see strong rev-

enue and profit growth in 2010?

BALKHEYOUR: We did see an improve-

ment in our overall figures in 2010 but

perhaps not as much as we had hoped at

the start of the year. We had late launch-

es of our satellites. One satellite was

delayed four months and the other one

was delayed one-and-a-half months. We

did not get the numbers we would have

liked, but we did get well above the

average market growth, creating a solid

base for bigger growth in 2011

VIA SATELLITE: What factors are affecting

capacity demand in the Middle East?

BALKHEYOUR: There are a number

of satellites set to be launched in the

region, however, this is a particu-

larly interesting question right now

because of the turmoil going on in

the Arab world, which might have an

effect on the business growth. It could

be positive; it could be negative. We

will have to wait and see. It depends

on the new regimes in each country

and how they liberalize and control

their space segment reach. We are

entering into an interesting period,

so we will see if things calm down

after this period. So far, there is no

direct impact, but changes are going

on. I hope it would have a positive

impact. The new thinking is calling

for more modernization, more infor-

mation and free societies, so I think

there will be more demand in terms

of reaching out to the world.

VIA SATELLITE: How is the defense mar-

ket looking for Arabsat?

BALKHEYOUR: Some of our custom-

ers are military and defense organi-

zations utilizing the standard bands

either C or Ku, but I do expect a lot

of growth in that area hopefully with

the Ka-band payload operational in

orbit, as they will be able to utilize

bigger and easier capacity to access.

This could lead to more appetite in

that technology. Some of our hosted

payloads could be also carrying other

frequency bands that are of interest in

such an important sector, but it may

take two to three years before we see

a big jump in demand.

VIA SATELLITE: Will you be targeting

any new markets?

BALKHEYOUR: We have promised to

launch one satellite a year since 2008.

We are doing that. We are covering the

whole of Africa right now as well as

most of Western Europe. The natural

expansion for us is to go East, and we

are targeting countries like Afghanistan,

Pakistan, Kazakhstan and even Turkey.

This is a natural expansion for us in

terms of geography.

VIA SATELLITE: What is the potential

of in-orbit satellite servicing?

BALKHEYOUR: Arabsat actually had

discussions with MDA. It sounds like

a great technology achievement, but I

don’t know if it will be practical for us

to implement in the near future. All of

our satellites are new. We only have

one satellite, which is reaching its end

of life this year. By the time this tech-

nology is realized in the frame of the

coming three years, our satellite will

be out of service.

JUNE

21-24 CommunicAsia 2011

Singapore

(Conference information:

www.communicasia.com)

21-26 International Paris

Air Show

Paris, France


http://www.paris-air-show.

com/en)

AUGUST

23-25 LandWarNet

Conference 2011

Tampa, Florida


http://www.afcea.org/

events/landwarnet)

SEPTEMBER

8-13 IBC 2011

Amsterdam, Netherlands


www.ibc.org)

12-16 World Satellite

Business Week

Paris, France


http://www.satellite-busi

ness.com)

27-29 APSCC 2011

Bali, Indonesia


http://www.apscc.or.kr)

OCTOBER

6-9 CeBIT Broadcast, Cable

& Satellite eurasia

Istanbul, Turkey


www.cebit-bcs.com)

12-13 SatCon 2011

New York, New York


www.satconexpo.com)

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GLOBAL REGULATIONS

The U.K. government is conducting a consultation

on what its civil space strategy should be for the period

2011-2015. Given the strong position of U.K. companies

in the space arena and explicit recognition of satellite

contributions to the national economy, this consultation

is important, and there remains time to submit comments,

as the deadline is not until July 8.

The U.K. Space Agency issued the consultation as one

of its first official acts as an executive agency of the gov-

ernment’s Department for Business Innovation and Skills

(BIS). The agency itself was launched in March 2010 as

a replacement for the British National Space Centre and

formally placed under the BIS on April 1.

The U.K. Space Agency says this new draft strategy “is

markedly different in tone and style than previous versions.”

The key difference in the brief strategy is said to be that

it draws upon the Space Innovation and Growth Strategy

(IGS) and takes growth as the main theme. The IGS was an

industry, academia and government strategy issued early

last year. (We wrote about the IGS in April 2010.)

The proposed strategy is built upon six focus areas,

all centered around the growth theme: growth from “new

opportunities,” growth from export, innovation support-

ing growth, science enabling growth, education for growth

and growth through smarter government.

The consultation document contains a nice, yet

restrained, focus on the importance of satellite communi-

cations for driving the entire sector forward. For instance,

it says that “continuing economic growth will depend

on a strong [U.K.] presence in markets of the future —

for example: satellite broadband, Earth observation and

applications that integrate space and terrestrial data for

new-high value uses.”

More should be said in the strategy about the role

of satellite communications, in particular the fact that

without communications satellites to create innova-

tion and economies of scale for launch and delivery, the

overall space market would be a small percentage of

what it is today. The U.K. Space Agency could turn to

a recent communication from the

European Commission on Europe-

an Union space strategy, issued on

April 4 from Brussels. That paper

identifies satellite communications

as “a key space sector, generating the largest revenues

in the space industry, in both Europe and the rest of the

world.” It acknowledges that satellite communications

have a “clear role to play” with respect to meeting Euro-

pean broadband objectives.

Translated into policy terms, this recognition should

foster government support for the communications sat-

ellite industry. The United Kingdom is a center for some

of the biggest satellite players. The proposed strategy

should direct more attention to the contributions they

make to overall space goals.

This support could be demonstrated in the last of the

six focus areas on “smarter government.” The strategy

consultation says that under this item it will encourage

“work with [the national regulator] Ofcom and interna-

tional bodies to ensure [that] appropriate radio frequen-

cies and orbit slots are available for future space services

and new ways of accessing space.”

At the latest count, the United Kingdom has submitted

due diligence information on the launch and operation of

90 satellite networks listed in the International Telecom-

munication Union (ITU) space network list. This total is

surpassed only by filings of the United States, Russia, China,

France and Japan. The United Kingdom, thus, has a compel-

ling interest in preserving the integrity of the ITU satellite

registration system. Recent disputes before the ITU’s Radio

Regulations Board demonstrate that the stakes are high

and countries will go to great lengths to preserve rights

to orbital slots and access to space. It is critical to ensure

that the system works and is not distorted by unverified

or simply fictitious ploys by other countries.

The proposed strategy refers both to orbital slots and

“appropriate radio frequencies.” Radio spectrum is the life-

blood of the satellite sector. Decisions to allocate spectrum

in one country can affect the ability of the satellite industry

to use that resource across the entire footprint of a satel-

lite. Thus, actions by Ofcom on spectrum can affect much

more than the U.K.-based revenues of a satellite, but also

can affect revenues from a far-wider service area.

In sum, we would like to see even more reference to the

communications satellite sector in the U.K. Space Agency

emphasis on growth. The agency consultation is available

on the BIS website: http://www.bis.gov.uk. Comment early

and often.

U.K. Space Strategy Consultation

Gerry Oberst is

a partner in the

Hogan Lovells

Brussels office.

By Ger r y Obers t


SATELLITE POLICIESBy Rau l Maga l lanes

We all are familiar with the VSAT (Very Small

Aperture Terminal) network, which encompasses a hub

and multiple, identical remote stations. VSAT licenses in

Ku-band have been used for a long time and provide what

is popularly called “blanket license” authority.

Interestingly, there is an equivalent concept in C-band,

the C-band Small Aperture Terminal (CSAT). This article

appears on the 10th anniversary of the implementation of

CSAT regulations in the United States and examines the

advantages and disadvantages of CSAT licenses.

Comparable to VSAT licenses, CSAT licenses provide

a so-called “blanket” authority to operate multiple, iden-

tical remotes controlled by one or more master stations.

Yet, this is where the similarities end. Despite the decade-

long existence of the CSAT concept, CSAT licenses still

lack the popularity that VSAT licenses have enjoyed for

so long. Here is why:

Location Restrictions and Frequency Coordination

VSAT terminals may be moved at will without the need to

report geographical location or modify the license. This

is possible because conventional Ku-band is allocated

exclusively to fixed satellite services.

In contrast, conventional C-band is shared on a primary

basis between satellite and fixed microwave services.

Therefore, every CSAT remote terminal must undergo

frequency coordination for a given set of geographic coor-

dinates. Any change in location requires a new frequen-

cy coordination as well as a modification of the CSAT

license.

Spectrum Allocation and Number of Satellites

CSAT networks are limited to 20 MHz of spectrum for the

uplink and 20 MHz for the downlink

per satellite. There can be up to

three satellites per license, and the

frequencies can be different for each

satellite. This totals a maximum of

120 MHz of combined spectrum for

a CSAT license. In other words, a

CSAT license is limited to 12 percent

of the 1,000 MHz of spectrum

available in conventional C-band.

Compare this with Ku-band VSAT

licenses and regular C-band licenses that have access to the

entire Ku-band spectrum and full satellite arc. Put in this

light, this spectrum ceiling places CSAT networks at a sig-

nificant disadvantage with regard to the ability to expand

the number of remotes.

Terminal Reporting

Licensees of CSAT networks have an obligation to file

an annual report with the U.S. Federal Communications

Commission (FCC) detailing all operational Earth stations

in the system. This report also must contain a list of all

stations deactivated during the year. The FCC then issues a

public notice reporting the stations that were deactivated

that year.

Advantages

On the other hand, CSAT networks do have some

advantages. For instance, they can operate conditionally

once the application is placed on public notice by the FCC.

In other words, there is no need to wait until the license

has been granted to start operations.

However, the FCC can revoke the conditional autho-

rization if a negative comment is filed during the public

notice period. This conditional operation is important, as

this provision does not exist for regular VSAT networks

or regular C-band authority.

Another advantage is that of regulatory costs. CSAT

applications pay a single filing fee for the entire network.

For a large network, there would be significant savings

when compared with obtaining a separate C-band license

for each remote.

Conclusion

CSAT networks have not been deployed as much as was

expected 10 years ago when the regulations were written.

But every application is different, and generalization never

leads to any intelligent solutions.

When making a decision as to which regulatory solu-

tion to choose, it is important to understand the network

at present and plan for the future. The cost and operational

advantages of the CSAT solution can be attractive if there

is no significant network growth expected. Otherwise, a

rapidly expanding network can quickly reach the band-

width ceiling imposed by the CSAT license.

C-Band Small Aperture Terminals (CSAT)

Raul Magallanes

runs a Houston-

based law firm

focusing on tele-

communications

law. He may be

reached at +1 (281)

317-1397 or by

email at raul@

rmtelecomlaw.com.

WWW.SATELL ITETODAY.COM VIA SATELL ITE MAGAZINE JUNE 2011 17

SATELLITE GETS PERSONALBy Max Enge l

The Great (Broadband) Leap Forward

The world of satellite broadband is about to see the

results of a revolution in satellite capacity. In Europe, Ka-Sat

is getting ready to enter service. In North America, ViaSat-1

is expected to be launched before the end of 2011, and the

similar Hughes Network Systems’ Jupiter satellite is planned

for launch early in 2012. These satellites are immensely

capable, with throughputs in the 70 Gbps for Ka-Sat and

100 Gbps-plus of bandwidth for ViaSat-1 and Jupiter.

In North America, this is an important development, as

it will improve on the speeds and capabilities offered by

ViaSat’s WildBlue-1 and Hughes’ Spaceway 3 satellites that

already have been operational for years over North America

providing a considerable amount of Ka-band capacity for

the satellite broadband offerings.

The advent of Ka-Sat service is even more important

for Europe. Up until now, European Ka-band capacity for

satellite broadband was limited to a few transponders on

Eutelsat’s Hotbird 6, with Avanti Communications’ Hylas

1 Ka-band satellite going into service around when you see

this column. With the addition of Ka-Sat to these offer-

ings, Ka-band service, which has revolutionized the North

American satellite broadband market, should do the same

for Europe. Meteorological conditions allowing, Ka-band

seems to be a necessary technology to truly enable satel-

lite broadband. For Europe, however, there will be two

revolutions in quick succession. The first is the availabil-

ity of any large amount of Ka-band capacity. With luck

this should accelerate the growth of Eutelsat’s Tooway

service to a more robust and successful business venture

as has already occurred in North America with WildBlue

and with HughesNet.

Beyond basic service, however, these high throughput

satellite offer the possibility of actually competing with

slower terrestrial broadband offerings.

Hughes has been mentioning this pos-

sibility for a couple of years when it

discussed the Jupiter satellite. Eutel-

sat’s Tooway is more directly trumpet-

ing download speeds of up to 10 Mbps

and upload speeds of up to 4 Mbps,

calling their upcoming service “DSL-

comparable” broadband service.

On its face, these numbers are bet-

ter than much available DSL service,

but there is a catch — bandwidth caps. Terrestrial broad-

band providers have been unsuccessful, thus far, in link-

ing price and usage. Time Warner, for example, made an

attempt with a test in Port Arthur, Texas, but backed down

in the face of strong customer resistance. Satellite broad-

band, however, is built around such limitations, though

they are not absolute. Hughes, for instance, has a late night

“Download Period” between about 2 a.m. and 7 a.m. East-

ern in which these caps are relaxed, but satellite usage is

never unmonitored.

This distinction in pricing strategies speaks to the dif-

ference between industries where capacity is relatively

cheap and easy to add (DSL, cable) and the satellite world,

where one simply cannot lay another fiber-optic cable to add

capacity. Satellite companies are not rapacious bandits, but

they do have to make a profitable business on the basis of

a smaller bandwidth pool. As a result, satellite broadband

has the usage caps that terrestrial broadband providers

seek. This makes it difficult to predict how the competition

between slow DSL and fast satellite will develop.

This is where the new generation of high throughput

satellites really matter. With the growing importance of the

Internet as a source of software downloads and video pro-

gramming, for satellite broadband to maintain its appeal,

the download caps will have to be structured in such a way

as to allow for relatively large downloads relatively often,

or satellite broadband will become satellite dial-up. High

throughput satellites could allow this sort of usage. It is no

longer a technological question but a market question.

With a race on just to maintain the current position, ViaSat

already has announced plans to build a ViaSat-2 satellite as

soon as the company studies the demand for ViaSat-1. Eutel-

sat says it can get a Ka-Sat 2 satellite from manufacturer

EADS Astrium two years after the order is placed.

The success of satellite broadband as a DSL replace-

ment rather than an option of absolute last resort will

depend on decisions made in board rooms, not develop-

ments in labs. With high throughput satellites, broadband

technology has come of age. What remains unclear is how

the balance between better service and more subscribers

will be set. No service ever gives capacity away for free,

but for the broadband satellite industry to grow beyond

being the service of last resort it will have to walk a deli-

cate line between capacity and pricing.

Max Engel is an

experienced satel-

lite industry and

telecom industry

analyst and found-

er of The North

Star Consultancy.

He can be reached

at maxnorthstar@

gmail.com.

B Y M A R K H O L M E S


With demands for

bandwidth set to increase,

satellite players are vying

to supply the crowded

maritime sector with more

effective communications

solutions, as shipping

operators look to satellite

to boost their performance.

COVER STORY

Maritime is one of the most exciting sectors for satellite companies, as shipping companies look to

beef up their communications and entertainment capabilities. Improved connectivity is becoming

a vital tool for improving overall efficiency and reducing costs as well as retaining an experienced

crew, important considerations for shipping operators during tough economic times.

It is clear the operators want more bandwidth, says Christian Bergan, director, verticals mar-

keting — maritime, for iDirect. “From a trending perspective, we see owners deploying new

applications, and bandwidth consumption is sharply on the rise. In fact, several of the operators

are reporting bandwidth consumption of more than 40 Gb per month. That is quite significant

compared to what it was a few years ago, when it was only 10 to 20 Gb per month, so there have

Becoming Pr

been major changes in bandwidth consumption. When we look

at the maritime market three to four years ago, VSAT played

a major role in specific segments such as cruise line or the oil

and gas tanker market. There was a lot of early interest from

these segments because they had the bandwidth requirements

necessary for broadband connectivity. In recent years we

have seen VSAT services gaining popularity in areas like the

shipping industry, because the increase in applications being

used on board has increased their requirements and they can’t

cost-effectively meet those needs through traditional satel-

lite services. There is a lot of new interest from areas where

VSAT has not been traditionally installed, and we expect that

trend to continue in the short- to mid-term.”

James Collett, director of maritime services at Inmarsat

says his company is seeing an increasing demand for greater

data volumes, which calls for more bandwidth and higher

throughput to and from ships. “The desire to have a ship as

a node on the network of a shipping company is absolutely

key. This demand for more data applications will lead to

more growth. What is clear is that many of these shipping

companies have strong business cases which center around

spending more on communications and connectivity in order

to bring a return in other areas. For example, fuel efficien-

cy, routing and general ship operations are all areas where

users can bring improvements to their bottom line through

increase use of satcoms, so everyone in the data market will

want to participate fully in that growth.”

In terms of some of the technology trends, Chris Baugh,

CEO of NSR, says, “Smaller dishes with higher throughput (is

one trend). The ‘hot dish’ now appears to be 30 centimeters,

half of last year’s ‘hot dish’ of 60 centimeters. In the maritime

market in general, everything is going IP ... engine monitoring,

internal navigation systems etc. On-board computer networks

are expanding to include Wi-Fi access points for personal lap-

tops on some of the higher-end customers. Smaller dishes, fixed

prices and regulatory changes mean smaller vessel operators

now are looking for satellite services,” he says.

New ApplicationsAs more bandwidth becomes available, the more shipping

companies can be creative in how they use this bandwidth.

“What you have seen over the last couple of years, particularly

with the financial crisis, is that there is a much higher

interest from ship owners in services that help them improve

their operational costs,” says Tore Morten Olsen, CEO of

Marlink. “That is things like remote diagnostics on engines,

administrative voice applications, etc. There are several

applications both developed and under development which

can help them drive the operational costs down.”

As well as providing better services for crew, this new

bandwidth can bring about other changes. Erik Ceuppens,

CEO, Vizada EMEA & Asia, says the move towards IP ser-

vices is a major trend among shipping operators. “You are

seeing this trend towards converging maritime broadband,

but certainly, if not more important than broadband, is this

trend towards always-on IP services. It is this always-on

functionality that will drive IP services and applications. If

you look at the levels of the IP sophistication onboard ves-

sels, it is still pretty low today. The connectivity services

have not been there, so the move towards always-on IP ser-

vice will encourage more advanced applications on board

vessels. Broadband usage is still relatively low today in the

maritime industry. Clearly, there is much potential here for

broadband, which will be adopted further thanks to lower

equipment prices and low airtime costs,” he says.

Julian Crudge, head of datacomms at Telenor Satellite

Broadcasting (TSB), says that with the existing restrictions

of capacity, there is pent-up demand for more connectivity.

“When we do get more capacity, such as Ka-band, this will be

taken up. Services have been changing from old SCPC services

over to shared access platforms, which gives slightly more

competitive pricing to ship owners,” he says.

Nick Dukakis, vice president of maritime and offshore,

SpeedCast, says the oil and gas sector also remains a strong

market for VSATs. “We have seen strong growth across all

maritime segments, particularly ones related to offshore oil

and gas. Offshore support vessels; floating production, stor-

age and offloading vessels; platforms and rigs are all strong

users of VSAT. In addition oil, chemical and [liquefied natural

gas] tankers are also a strong segment. We see the trend of

very strong growth for VSAT over the next five years across

all verticals, including commercial shipping and using a com-

bination of technologies based on Ku-, C- and L-bands. There

will be more bandwidth hungry applications being used on-

board and more integration between vessels and land-based

offices. In addition to crew welfare, we see additional driv-


Prime Time For Satellite Companies


ers in the market such as administrative, operational and

regulatory ones pushing the need for more bandwidth and

real-time fixed fee operations,” he says.

Crew WelfareCrew welfare has become a huge issue for shipping operators,

as crew members continue to demand the same level of

communications they have access to on land. Crews are also

getting younger and more IT and broadband hungry. “As the

global economy improves and competition intensifies, crew

recruitment and retention are becoming more critical to

companies’ operations and profits,” Dukakis says.

Iridium has seen some interesting trends in terms of con-

sumer behavior, says Dan Mercer, general manager and vice

president for Europe, Middle East, Africa and Russia for

Iridium. “We did an experiment with a very large, well-known

fleet to see if there was a better way in providing the service

to the crew. It is about crew retention as well as the welfare

of the crew on board. What we have found is that people

don’t jump on the Internet and look at 25 different websites.

Typically, they are only looking at three or four websites —

Facebook, e-banking, sports or a news page. That was quite

a trend that allowed us to help focus our partners on optimiz-

ing the user experience over 128 Kbps or 64 Kbps at a fair

price. That is the type of service we are seeing being rolled

out,” he says. “We are see great demand for crew e-mail, crew

Internet and instant messaging. Then it is a question of how

you deliver the services. The shipping companies want to

retain these guys, but they don’t won’t the administrative

overhead to find out who has paid for what.”

Ka-Band and Other Next-Generation PlatformsThe development of Ka-band services is generating excitement

throughout the sector. “There is an increasing proportion

of the market which is looking for a genuine broadband

experience,” Collett says. “We have seen that through the

momentum that maritime VSAT services have gained. We

are very keen to be part of that growth. We see a significant

number of our current customers who, by the time we bring

Global Xpress to market, will be very attracted to the maritime

broadband offerings that we will then have in the market.

We also see opportunities with customers that have been

using maritime VSATs now being open to us.”

“With Ka-band coming, this may improve the value prop-

osition to ship owners,” Olsen says. “They can have smaller

antennas on board. It potentially provides higher data through-

put opportunities which could then be utilized for services

such as VoD and other higher bandwidth consuming applica-

tions which are not present or economically feasible in the

market today.”

Jan Hetland, director, datacomms systems, TSB, says, “I

think the next paradigm shift, will be when large amounts of

Ka-band become available. I think Ka-band will bring some

shifts in the maritime VSAT industry. When you transition

to Ka-band, you won’t have the situation you have in the

Ku-band market today where just anyone can put together

a hub, as long as you have the room or the permit to trans-

mit from a 2.4-meter or slightly larger antenna. In the future,

given the nature of Ka-band satellites, there will be a small-

er number of teleports per satellite, as all the traffic needs

to come down a tier one gateway. That means the satellite

owner and operator will take a larger part of the value chain

than they do today, where the FSS operators are just selling

wholesale capacity to their customers.”

Ceuppens says there will be a great flexibility in the mar-

ket as well, with other technologies helping to expand ser-

vice offerings in the maritime market. “Technologies such as

Ku-band will continue to progress. Over the next few years,

we will see different broadband technologies competing in

the market, which will bring equipment and airtime prices

further down,” he says.

Iridium’s Next constellation is scheduled to operational

by 2017, and will allow the operator to expand its maritime

offerings, Mercer says. “Our new service on Iridium Next

on L-band will be up to 1.5 Mbps. When you compare that

to today, that is the top end of the VSAT services and some

of the Ka-band services that are being talked about. For us,

that encompasses a huge amount of the requirements of the

maritime sector. Our customer base does not want to nec-

essarily replace equipment. What you are going to see from

our perspective is a migration of new customers who want

high-speed data services as well as all the existing custom-

ers who want to stay as they are,” he says.

Dukakis believes the market will see a space for different

solutions working in different bandwidth. “I think solutions on

Ka-, Ku-, C- and L-band will co-exist. Ka-band is obviously the

next big question mark. How will it be priced commercially,

for which subsegments will it be interesting to, and how will it

perform technically? These are all important questions for the

industry and ones we would also like to have answers to.”

Shipping Operator PerspectiveMaersk Line, one of the leading shipping companies around

the globe, has an initiative, Project Gangway, that involves

the deployment of Inmarsat’s FleetBroadband service to 220

container vessels. “Project Gangway is part of our division’s

business strategy and a clever way of investing to gain cost

and business advantages, for example, in fuel consumption,”

says Soren Andersen, head of vessel management, A.P.

Moller-Maersk, container division. “One of the objectives

behind putting into place many of the recommendations of

the company’s seafarers was to improve communication

which would, in turn, result in more efficient fuel and energy

consumption and, therefore, tangible business efficiencies.

Quicker communication to the captain to adjust and reduce

speed when coming into a specific port because the berth is

To comment on this article, visit Mark Holmes’ blog at

www.SatelliteToday.com/blog/?p=90

B L O G S P E C I A L


not ready will naturally provide fuel savings. Equally, if we

need to improve delivery times, we can communicate the

need to increase speed.”

The company should be able to realize significant costs

savings as a result. “The cost effective and reliable communi-

cations provided by Marlink, Vizada and Inmarsat will enable

Maersk Line to deliver significant operational efficiencies,

resulting in fuel savings and emission reductions that will

help Maersk Line reach our ambitious environmental targets.

Further, it has been of utmost importance to Maersk Line that

the solution has focus on crew welfare by offering facilities for

our crews to stay in touch with family and friends 24/7,” says

Niels Bruus, director, energy efficiency, Maersk Line.

Impact of Economic SlowdownWhile most acknowledge the recession slowed down the pace

of expected growth in the maritime market, it seems business

is moving forward. “The market is picking up again now. I think

the downturn has passed. I think we are seeing new demand

from new ships and new shipping lines as well as increased

connectivity. Even though there has been a slower market

over the last couple of years, it has still been growing year

on year,” says Crudge.

Dukakis says only some sectors of the market really suf-

fered due to the economy. “I think for some segments, such as

commercial shipping, container vessels and bulkers, there were

delays in making decisions for VSAT.

This is not surprising during the eco-

nomic downturn, when many of these

vessels were laid up. The positive news

is that the container vessel sector is

coming back, and they are beginning

to put VSATs on board and do various

trials. We have a number of very large

container companies that are doing

VSAT trials,” he says. “I think over the

last three years certain verticals, such

as the oil and gas and the tanker side,

are going full steam ahead on the VSAT

side. On the commercial side, we are

seeing more operators put VSATs on

board. I think it has been a gradual edu-

cation and awareness.”

Ceuppens says, “I don’t think the

economic crisis has fundamentally

changed the usage of maritime broad-

band, but it has probably slowed them

down in two aspects. Firstly, it has

delayed a bit the uptake of more

expensive capital intensive systems.

At the same time, we have neverthe-

less seen a dramatic uptake of broad-

band. Ship owners and administra-

tors have clearly adopted broadband

technology. Some of these companies

have chosen it to reduce costs, but they have not yet really

fully adapted or changed their usage patterns. This means

they are not taking full advantage of service levels avail-

able with broadband technology. There has been a slower

take-up of the more expensive systems because of the cli-

mate, and probably the crisis has slowed down the usage

patterns of customers.”

Baugh says shipping companies reassessed their communi-

cations needs due to the recession. “I think the downturn has

forced the maritime sector to re-analyze all of their cost-ben-

efit analyses. The big guys have expanded their deployments

because they realize the value proposition of integrating satel-

lite services into their day-to-day operations. They also stream-

lined regulatory filings, reduced in-port maintenance times,

lower crew churn, etc. For the smaller operators, already

marginally profitable, most have frozen their acquisitions, but

2011 looks to have some buying activity resume as economic

conditions improve. Changes in regulation will also mean that

some fleets will need to purchase satellite-based offerings

simply to continue

operating ... Histo-

ry shows that they

will likely expand-

ed their satellite

usage down the

road,” he says.

Mark Holmes is

Via Satellite’s

Associate Editor.

The average reader surely has heard it and read it several

times before, but the refrain on satellite broadband is worth

repeating: satellites are ideally suited to bring 21st century

communication services to the millions of people around the

globe living in remote and rural areas. Indeed, few experts

would disagree with the statement that satellite broadband

is the fastest, most efficient and most cost-effective means of

increasing broadband adoption in rural areas — in developing as

well as in developed markets. “Satellite broadband technology

provides an end-to-end solution that covers every segment of

the communication network, the first mile, the middle mile

and the last mile,” says Dean Manson, senior vice president,

general counsel and secretary at Hughes Communications.

Market forces alone might

not be enough to attain

universal service in the

broadband era. The satellite

sector should endeavor to

find its place in the array of

technologies supported by

mechanisms like the U.S.

Universal Service Fund.

TThe average

times before,

eating: s

munica

globe living

would disagree

the fastest,

increasing broadband

ll as in de

provides an

UniversalService Funds

Funds

B Y G I O V A N N I V E R L I N I

Look For Right Technology Mix


Yet, in reality satellite broadband is not the unmitigated

success story that many were expecting it to be. Despite some

remarkable exceptions, the landscape for broadband via satel-

lite remains patchy at best, with operators playing a marginal

role in the effort to bridge the digital gap between town and

country. In North America, HughesNet service had more than

558,000 consumer subscribers at the end of the 2010 third

quarter, while ViaSat’s WildBlue reported about 423,000 total

subscribers. In Asia, IPStar reports nearly a quarter of a million

user terminals sold, 100,000 of which

are in two markets: Australia and New

Zealand. Meanwhile in Europe, Astra-

2Connect, the broadband arm of sat-

ellite giant SES Astra, reported more

than 75,000 end users as of March.

As described in so many studies

and articles, to a certain extent, this

is an issue of technology, which has,

so far, prevented satellite operators

from delivering services compara-

ble to terrestrial technologies when

it comes to pricing. This is set to

change with the advent of so-called

high-throughput satellite (HTS) plat-

forms such as ViaSat-1 and Eutelsat’s

Ka-Sat, which are expected to take

the issue of broadband affordability

to a different level. Yet, the number

of broadband-deprived people in the

world remains in the hundreds of mil-

lions, and the goal of universal service

still remains a distant dream in most

countries. This suggests that technol-

ogy and market forces alone might not

be enough to attain universal service;

direct support from the state might be

needed to achieve this goal.

Universal Service: U.S. CaseNot to be confused with universal access to a publicly

available telecommunication center, universal service today

can be defined as availability and widespread affordability

of information and communications technologies (ICT).

This has long been on the agenda of national as well as

international telecom authorities such as the International

Telecommunication Union (ITU).

The issue, of course, is not new. In the age of mobile tele-

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phony, it is easy to forget that there was a time when access to

basic telecommunications services was a major problem even

in developed markets like the United States. This was solved

largely through a mechanism involving state incentives and

assistance. To solve today’s ICT universal service gaps, which

are essentially broadband gaps, the same mechanism might be

needed. “Past experiences in this country have confirmed the

relative difficulties of achieving affordable universal service

by reliance on market forces alone,” says Maury Mechanick,

counsel, White & Case. “The costs of bringing connectivity to

remote and unserved regions, whether in prior days denomi-

nated as access to public switched telephony network (PSTN)

services or as today possibly denominated as broadband access,

is simply prohibitively expensive for customers residing in such

areas without some form of subsidy being provided.”

When AT&T was the de facto monopoly provider serving

almost all of the United States, this subsidy was embedded in

the overall AT&T tariff structure and, therefore, was relatively

invisible, says Mechanick. “However, following the breakup

of the Bell System in the early 1980s, the need for an explicit

subsidy arose, which is what has led to the development and

current status of today’s Universal Service Fund (USF).”

A similar mechanism might be needed to spur on the

deployment of broadband connectivity across the United

States. The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

is looking to have the USF concept evolve from a mechanism

for assuring PSTN connectivity to one focusing on broadband

connectivity instead. In February, the FCC released a public

statement in which it outlined its intention to modernize and

streamline its universal service and inter-carrier compensation

policies to bring affordable wired and wireless broadband

— and the jobs and investment they spur — to all Americans

while combating waste and inefficiency.

The issue is of paramount importance. The FCC’s USF,

which helped connect rural America to telephone service,

fails to effectively and efficiently target support for broadband

in rural areas. Locked in outdated distinctions between local

and long-distance telephone service and inefficient per-minute

charges, the USF is intertwined with the complex system of

payments between carriers and suffers from loopholes that

distort markets and derail investment in IP networks. The

proposal is to use market-based policies to support provid-

ers in a technology-neutral manner, targeting areas where

broadband funding will have the biggest impact.

Last year, the FCC released America’s first National

Broadband Plan. FCC chairman Julius Genachowski in a

February speech, said. “The plan identified broadband (high-

speed Internet) as a vital infrastructure for our economic

future and global competitiveness — an essential platform

for innovation and job creation, crucial to the success of

our businesses, large and small, and for building stronger,

more-connected communities.”

Properly structured, a revised and revitalized USF could

represent a significant opportunity for the American public

and the satellite industry. Yet, in a nine-page speech on USF

reform, the word satellite is mentioned just once. “Unfor-

tunately, while the FCC seems to have finally, albeit per-

haps begrudgingly, recognized the potential value of satellite

broadband delivery in terms of promoting greater broadband

availability, it is still approaching the issue as if satellite were

the unattractive stepchild of broadband technology,” says

Mechanick. “For example, in its recently released notice of

proposed rulemaking dealing with overhaul of the current

USF system, satellite operators would be ineligible to partici-

pate in a contemplated reverse auction process that would

make available up to $1 billion in the form of a one-time cash

infusion to support the build-out and operation of broadband

networks in unserved areas across the country,” he says.

Such funding would be made available only to eligible

recipients — consisting of fixed (wireline or wireless) or

mobile wireless providers — that then would have the choice

(or not) of subcontract service delivery to broadband satellite

operators. Moreover, the FCC is considering imposing restric-

tions on the number of households in particularly defined

service areas that would be able to be served by satellite in

the belief that such restrictions would be necessary to better

ration the so-called scarcity of available satellite capacity.

“This mentality and these types of restrictions do nothing

more than further impede the ability of satellite broadband

providers to play a meaningful role in the achievement of the

objectives for national broadband availability that the FCC

has otherwise set,” says Mechanick.

Some OptimismOthers take a more positive view on these developments.

“The FCC has, for the first time, opened the door to satellite

broadband’s participation in the program,” says Lisa

Scalpone, vice president and general counsel at WildBlue

Communications. “This is a terrific opportunity for our

industry, and we appreciate that the FCC has taken the time

to understand and incorporate satellite into what was already

a very complex program.”

On the whole, it is clear that this reform is expected to have

a positive effect on broadband deployment. Ultimately, the

FCC is expected to streamline and consolidate the five sepa-

rate USF programs that support rural phone networks into

a single Connect America Fund. “This fund will be switched

over to broadband support, and rural America is the target

of the program,” says Scalpone.

It also is important to note that some federal aid has

reached the satellite sector. “U.S. government programs, such

as the broadband stimulus program currently underway at

the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service

(RUS), can make broadband significantly more affordable

to the consumer,” says Manson. “Through that RUS program,

for example, Hughes delivers qualified customers free equip-

ment, free installation and a reduced-price service.”

In addition, the America’s Recovery and Re-Investment

Act (ARRA) broadband stimulus program is benefiting ser-

vices such as HughesNet. It subsidizes qualified customers


with about $500 for the upfront equipment and installation

cost together with a year of service for satellite broadband.

“Hughes was fortunate to win a $58.7 million award for sub-

sidizing our HughesNet service, the largest of the $100 mil-

lion allocated for satellite Internet providers,” says Arunas

Slekys, vice president of Hughes’ corporate marketing and

general manager for the Russia/CIS Region.

Similarly, WildBlue Communications was awarded an esti-

mated $19.5 million in grant funding by the Department of

Agriculture’s RUS under the 2009 ARRA to connect unserved

residents to affordable broadband services. The funding is

in response to WildBlue’s Western Regional Proposal to the

RUS, which focused on providing services to less densely

populated areas in 20 western and midwestern states, includ-

ing many areas which are economically disadvantaged and

have no access to terrestrial broadband services.

Efforts Around the GlobeThe issue of broadband universal service is not limited to

the United States, and a number of countries are considering

programs either similar to USF or that involve government

sponsorship of broadband deployments.

“We have watched the developments in Australia very close-

ly, where the government has issued a request for proposal for

a satellite broadband program,” says Scalpone. “After a lot of

careful study, the government decided that satellite was the

best option to serve large geographic

areas of the country. In this instance,

the program is designed especially for

satellite, which may be different from

the FCC Connect America Fund — a

program designed to be technology

neutral.”

In Europe, the plans to bring broad-

band universal service seem even more

ambitious. In October, the European

Commission’s Directorate-General for

Regional Policy issued a communica-

tion, “Regional Policy contributing to

smart growth in Europe 2020,” in which

it was calling upon member states to

“consider how to better use the Euro-

pean Fund for Regional Development

to accelerate achievement of the Euro-

pean Union (EU) 2020 objectives for

broadband access, including total cov-

erage, making use of the different tech-

nologies (fiber, adsl, wireless, satellite)

available to suit the diverse geographi-

cal needs and challenges of different

regions across the EU.”

The response from Europe’s

satellite operators has been positive. “I

commend Commissioner [for Regional

Policy Johannes] Hahn for recognizing

that EU funds can and should be used to connect the 80

percent of Europe’s rural population that are today still not

connected to broadband networks,” says Christodoulos

Protopapas, chairman of the European Satellite Operator

Association (ESOA). “His call to member states to make best

use of [European Fund for Regional Development] along with

his recognition of the different needs of different regions in

Europe marks a breakthrough in how the commission has

so far tackled the question of the digital divide.”

The plan is ambitious, especially at a time when nation-

al budgets are under pressure. The Directorate General

for Regional Policy “has done well to recognize the need

to greater leverage private investment given present day

restraints on public expenditure,” says Aarti Holla, ESOA’s

secretary general. “This is not only a reality for many mem-

ber states but it also speaks to satellite operators that

have made long-term upfront investments in new satel-

lites, including those for broadband.”

The hope is that

in Europe, like in

the United States

and the rest of the

world, these invest-

ments will bear the

fruits that we all

hope for.

Giovanni Verlini is a communication executive and freelance journalist based in Europe.

Email: [email protected]

+1 480 333 [email protected]

www.comtechefdata.com

Multi-LayerOptimization

Comtech EF Data is the recognized leader in satellite bandwidth effi ciency and link optimization.Our technologies provide value by reducing OPEX / CAPEX and increasing throughput. The patented RAN optimization by our subsidiary, Memotec, is our most recent value-added capability for mobile backhaul applications. By optimizing RAN traffi c, required bandwidth to support deployed capacity can be reduced by up to 50%. Memotec’s RAN optimization layered on our other core technologies, such as VersaFEC® and DoubleTalk® Carrier-in-Carrier®, is now an integral part of our mobile backhaul solutions. RAN optimization is available in the stand-alone Memotec products or integrated into our market-leading modems. Whether you need to backhaul just a few TRXs, E1s, E3s and/or IP, you can have confi dence when you select solutions from the leaders in satellite-based mobile backhaul.

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What makes IP such a game changer is that it has been

universally embraced by every facet of industry and

provides a congruent pathway to the interconnection

of a massive number of disparate devices. The

ramifications are significant when you consider the

sheer numbers of electric meters, television sets and

electric appliances that could conceptually become

consumers of telecommunication services. A common

network interface and a common transport protocol not

only simplifies the collection and dissemination of data,

the idea of universal connectivity is changing the way

companies do business.

John Ball, vice president of satellite distribution

and technology for Turner Broadcasting, highlights an

example of the positive effects that IP has had on the

distribution of video content. “We recently completed a

video distribution ring around our playout center in the

United Kingdom. The ring is based on 2.5 gigabit switched

Ethernet, and it is a much more robust network design

than a hub and spoke architecture. We can now hand-

off content to six different transport providers. The IP

architecture allows us to grow up to 10 gigabits per second

should we need additional bandwidth,” says Ball. “The

shift to IP has also improved our network management

Internet Protocol (IP) is far from perfect, but it has become the

central rallying point for global entities, setting in motion the

early homogenization of the electronics, telecommunication,

electric utility and entertainment industries. The

implementation of IP strategies is not new, but aside from a

common transmission protocol, what impact will the buildup

of IP networks have on the satellite sector?

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In IP World

B Y G R E G B E R L O C H E R


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COMTECH ViaSat_Multilayer FP.indd 1 11/30/10 7:27 PM


visibility. We can now actually look into the network beyond

our interface, giving us viewing privileges so we can now

assess the integrity of the network.”

The network also has provided “some interesting technolo-

gies available for contribution links,” says Ball. “Fiber is still

very expensive in many countries and has a lot of maturing to

do in certain geographic regions. One interesting technology

we discovered is the use of secure Internet delivery (IP SEC)

to provide backup paths over the Internet for contribution

links. There are risks involved, but these links are only used

as backups to primary links,” he says.

Ron Mankarious, vice president of sales and marketing

for PolarSat, a Montreal-based manufacturer of hub-less,

mesh VSAT modems, says. “IP provides a common switching

fabric. In the past, satellite equipment manufacturers would

have to build one type of interface for voice cards that went

into their modems and a different type of interface that went

into the data cards. Now everything is Ethernet and all of

the applications communicate through a common interface.

From an equipment manufacturers’ perspective, this makes

everything much simpler and allows us to reduce pricing to

our customers,” he says.

Mankarious cites the wireless industry as an example of

how IP can transform entire industries. “The mobile environ-

ment was built around dedicated circuits with point-to-point

connectivity between the Base Transceiver Station (BTS) and

Base Station Controller (BSC). Putting in an IP switching fabric

allows wireless operators to handle multiple types of traffic,

which allows them to drive additional services over the same

network and create new revenue streams. An IP-based back-

haul solution allows wireless carriers to push intelligence to

the edges of the network rather than consolidating in a central

site. By doing so, calls can now be routed from cell tower to

cell tower via a single hop instead of going back to the central

switching site. Not only do you eliminate double hops, creat-

ing a better user experience for cell phone users, we can cut

the bandwidth a wireless carrier needs by half,” he says.

The advent of IP-capable systems has helped satellite

technology become more of a mainstream networking tech-

nology, Mankarious says. “It has allowed the satellite equip-

ment to be incorporated as part of the end user’s network

since it is the same basic technology that is running in the IT

closet.” PolarSat supports two groups of customers: satellite

service providers which use their equipment to provide ser-

vices and end users who integrate PolarSat’s hub-less VSAT

system into their existing IP network. “We are finding more

customers who are willing to do the integration themselves.

The adoption of IP and the ease of use of the equipment are

driving this commonality,” he says.

Mankarious feels that satellite technology is becoming

accepted by IT organizations for several reasons. “Satellite

isn’t seen as exotic now days. IT departments don’t need wires

anymore to connect devices and it is only reasonable to ask

‘Why shouldn’t my long haul connection be wireless as well,’”

he says.

Service Providers Doing MoreSeveral satellite sector executives note the increasing

hybridization of terrestrial and satellite networks and the desire

to centrally manage the different elements. “We are increasingly

being asked to manage the complete network infrastructure

from our Compass Network Management System,” says Wally

Martland, president of Newpoint Technologies, a wholly owned

subsidiary of Integral Systems. “In the past, we were primarily

responsible for management of the satellite hubs and remote

site radio frequency equipment. Today, customers are looking

for 100 percent network visibility and complete situational

awareness. We have enhanced our GUI to accommodate new

equipment types such as the microwave and fiber backbones

as well as the facility infrastructure such as HVAC, UPS,

generators and fuel systems, remote site security systems

and more.” As more of the industry move to IP connectivity to

meet their needs, Newpoint is being asked to manage additional

network components, such as hubs, switches and firewalls as

well as computer servers located at remote sites, he says.

“There is no question that networks of all sorts are becom-

ing hybrid,” says Carlos Placido, senior consultant for NSR.

“Examples abound, from telcos launching satellite TV plat-

forms and buying wireless last mile providers to cellular net-

works making use of backhaul and backbone solutions of all

sorts to reach end users. Sometimes, a single cell phone call

travels over a satellite backhaul link, a terrestrial microwave

link and a fiber backbone to reach the other end. Indeed hybrid

satellite-wireless optimization may become an interesting

development niche. However, satellites tend not to be in the

driver’s seat of this move towards hybrids. When it comes to

unicast applications, satellites are still perceived as the tech-

nology of last resort to reach end users,” he says.

But as more customers embrace hybrid networks, they

will seek a single solution they can put in place to manage the

entire infrastructure, says Martland. “Network management

providers must be able to quickly and easily interface with

the SNMP equipment that makes up today’s IP networks. The

move to IP-centric networks, along with customer’s require-

ment to have all their network assets managed by a single

solution, makes it imperative that you have a solid and robust

SNMP management capability. One thing often overlooked

is that scalability now will become a major issue because in

the past, for a traditional monitor and control system, you

were interfacing into modems and RF equipment that had

anywhere from 30 to 500 points associated with the device

itself. The number of changes and the size of the database even

on large systems was relatively small. When you look at the

standard IP equipment, often times you are interfacing with

1,000-plus points for equipment such as hub and routers, and

this means your network management system has to be able

to scale up to tens of thousands of points and still maintain

performance,” he says.

“We see a continued hybridization of terrestrial and satel-

lite networks in the future. This is driving the move to have a

single [network management system] capable of managing


both and providing a single system for operators to manage

across the whole network and not use one system for terres-

trial and one for satellite networks,” Martland says. “This has

also driven demand for operators to be able to have service

level views that enable them to track their traffic across both

the satellite and terrestrial networks so when there are prob-

lems in the network, they can determine which services have

been affected and prioritize recovery of these services. Trying

to do this bouncing between three or four or more network

management systems makes the task difficult, and it delays

recovery, which directly affects the quality of service they are

able to provide,” he says.

Changing Contribution LinksJohn Glass, executive vice president of marketing at Nevion

points to the benefits that IP networks have brought to

contribution links. Nevion provides video solutions to

broadcasters and telecommunication carriers. “Although

we support any video format over any video network, the

basis of our future business is IP-based. It is significant to

our future growth,” he says. “IP allows you the flexibility to

provide fully managed video delivery services with all of the

critical facets, including: service provisioning, scheduling,

connection management, analytics and network monitoring.

The major telcos and carriers in the United States have been

offering switched video delivery services for over 10 years,

but those services have just started

hitting their growth curve over the last

two to three years.”

Placido says IP delivery is becoming

the de facto transport protocol. “For the

satellite sector in particular, near-term

implications are the increasing use of

IP across many satellite applications.

Examples include the complementary

use of satellite TV and IP video converg-

ing at the DVR, use of IP transport in

optimized cellular backhaul links, the

strong erosion of IDR fixed telephony

in favor of satellite (and terrestrial)

VoIP, use of IP in statistically multi-

plexed video systems, and enterprise

networks’ continuing shift from trans-

parent serial-based networks towards

multi-point IP systems,” he says.

The next step for IP transport will

be the transition from bent-pipe satel-

lite links. “We see a clear shift with the

emergence and globalization of high-

throughput satellites (HTS), a sector

that was born to address the endless

appetite for broadband bandwidth.

Most HTS initiatives use bent-pipe

architectures but are designed with

IP in mind from day one. One recent

implication of HTS has been a redefinition of roles of the

satellite operator and satellite service provider,” Placido

says. “Unlike traditional FSS operators, HTS players do not

just provide capacity but IP services. Indeed, HTS players

tend to define technology for their ground infrastructure

and deploy terrestrial gateways, functions that used to be

part of satellite service providers,” he says.

“At the same time, service providers are increasingly agnos-

tic in terms of what technology they use to reach end users,

so the long-term picture of the impact of IP on the satellite

sector is that services and architectures may be increasingly

defined at the satellite core rather than at the edge,” Placido

says. “Service providers will tend to rely on wholesale IP

services and rebrand/bundle these under a virtual operator

model to reach their users. The shift towards IP will possibly

encourage evolution of the occasional-use model for video

contribution and terrestrial restoration. Also, spot beams’ small

coverage characteristics limit demand ‘liquidity,’ so opera-

tors will need to find ways to make the most out of existing

capacity; perhaps by even exploring auction-based offering

of vacant capacity at certain times of the day.”

Impact on BusinessThe advent of IP has “virtualized” network management, says

Placido, allowing operators to run a teleport business virtually

without owning one by relying on teleport facilities and housing


services offered by major operators. “Additionally, as satellite

network management and traffic optimization become more

complex, some advanced network management functions may

eventually move to the cloud. This could help both service

providers and vendors to focus on their core competencies.

There is not yet much experience of could computing and the

software as a service (SaaS) model in the satellite sector, but

there have already been some interesting developments around

SaaS replacing software licensing in areas as diverse as satellite

bandwidth optimization and digital signage,” he says.

IP also fosters structural changes towards a more efficient

supply chain, “a situation that can lead to winner-take-all

outcomes in detriment of small players,” Placido says. “IP has

been the key driver for the emergence of HTS and structural

changes to the satellite business in some parts of the world.

But it is worth keeping in mind the ‘creative destruction’ nature

of the IP openness, which can destroy traditional thinking

and give birth to new business models and companies very

quickly. Indeed, I think that the biggest implication that the

migration to IP has not just on the satellite sector but on

all telecom sectors is that IP networks encourage service

disintermediation via all sorts of network effects and virtual

services that take control off pipe providers.”

Future Issues, BenefitsThe reality is that satellite networks no longer can enjoy

security through obscurity. Now that satellite hardware

uses the same interfaces and management tools as those

found in everyone’s IT closet, that hardware now is more

prone to attack. Only the naive believes they are immune.

IP has evolved over the years, but the most current protocol

release still includes several assumptions, which have been

carried forth since the inception of the protocol: devices

are attached to wires with unlimited bandwidth, there is

low latency, and the transmission of data is error free.

While satellite networks handle point number three with

ease, points one and two are troublesome, and the sector

is not the only one, which has trouble with the first two

points. The cellular industry also must deal with finite

amounts of bandwidth and latency. Requests for comments

to the Internet Engineering Task Force regarding changing

the protocol based on link characteristics have failed to

gain any traction, at least for the time being. Perhaps,

in the future, the satellite and wireless communities will

be able to jointly

succeed in getting

hooks added to

IP protocol for

non-fiber media

and it will truly

become a universal

protocol.

GE Satellite

pacific star

imagination at work

High above the Pacific basin is a true star in satellite communications.

The fully US-owned GE-23 Satellite delivers unrivaled coverage of the Pacific region’s dynamic data and information traffic zone. It provides versatile, high bandwidth payload capability that meets a wide array of communications needs, and is ideal for military, maritime, backhaul and other VSAT applications.

www.gesatellite.com

Greg Berlocher has

been active in the

satellite industry for

twenty five years and

is the President of

Transcendent Global

Networks LLC.

Executive Q&A


BROADCASTERS CORNER

Trace TV, an urban and tropical music channel provider,

is distributed to more than 17 million households in 130

countries around the globe. Trace TV CEO Olivier Laouchez

discusses the broadcaster’s plans.

VIA SATELLITE: What is the next phase of your strategy?

LAOUCHEZ: The road map is clear — make Trace a global

brand and a market leader in its three segments: urban music

and culture, tropical music and sports celebrities. The Trace

team has more energy and resources than ever to build the

company to the next level. All profits made during the last

four years are invested for the future. Our HD strategy and

the launch of Trace Sports require several million euros of

investment, and we are confident that these new products

will be the key drivers for growing Trace moving forward.

VIA SATELLITE: Are you seeking more capacity in 2011?

LAOUCHEZ: We have had a great relationship with Eutelsat

since the very beginnings of Trace in 2003. Eutelsat’s under-

standing of Trace’s growth strategy was a key element to

build Trace’s presence in 150 countries. Trace channels are

now available on 27 satellites worldwide, including seven

from Eutelsat, and we are now discussing with Eutelsat to

add our three HD channels on their EuroBird HD constel-

lation. For us, Eutelsat is more than a satellite capacity pro-

vider but a global transmission partner that can provide a

wide range of services and expertise to bring our TV feeds

to our distribution partners anywhere in the world. Satel-

lite is our biggest expense, and it is important to notice that

there is always ground to find smart business solutions with

Eutelsat teams in France and Germany to build business

for the interest of the two parties.

VIA SATELLITE: What impact did the economy have on your

growth plans?

LAOUCHEZ: 2010 was our best year ever with more than

30 percent growth and more than 12 million euros ($17.4

million) in revenues. Our three revenue engines — affiliate

sales, advertising and licenses — were not really impacted

by the global recession because of our niche positioning and

our strong position in fast growing emerging markets. 65

percent of our revenues come from outside of France, which

is still our biggest market, but we

are experiencing more and more

growth in Africa, Asia and Latin

America.

VIA SATELLITE: What impact is new broadcasting technology

having on your business?

LAOUCHEZ: 2011 is our HD year. There are not many

examples of niche channels moving to HD so fast. By the

end of March, all of our existing SD music channels were

available in HD with more than 60 percent native HD con-

tent. Trace Sports, to be launched in May, will be 80 percent

HD native. This HD migration is obviously a great develop-

ment to improve the Trace experience from a viewer point

of view. Nevertheless, it is impossible to recoup this invest-

ment in the short-term. Versus SD, HD requires important

additional expenses in content, graphics, playout, trans-

mission and satellite. Most of the time, end users, who

have already acquired full HDTV sets, think this invest-

ment includes the HD channels cost, and TV distributors

are reluctant to increase their fees because of the intense

competition in the pay-TV market. The good news is the

migration to MPEG-4. More and more distributors are now

adopting this compression format and have more capacity

to adopt new channels, especially in HD.

VIA SATELLITE: Are you looking to be present on platforms

such as the iPad and other mobile devices?

LAOUCHEZ: These are universes we cannot ignore. We will

be launching applications for both the iPad and the iPhone

in a few weeks thanks to a partnership with Mobclip. These

applications will offer our three linear channels and VOD

content. Our priority target group — teenagers and young

adults — is permanently using mobile devices.

VIA SATELLITE: How do you see the broadcast landscape

changing globally in the next 12 months?

LAOUCHEZ: The broadcast market is constantly changing.

One thing permanent is that content and brand will remain

key drivers. Players that can develop great and innovative

content (and know how to monetize it on all devices) and

have clear brand recognition will win.

Olivier Laouchez, CEO, Trace TV

INDUSTRY AT LARGE


Technology xx

Services xx

Contracts xx

Executive Moves xx

TECHNOLOGY

Comtech Xicom INTRODUCES XTLN KA-BAND BUC PRODUCT LINE

Comtech Xicom Technology introduced a family of Ka-band

block up converters (BUCs) designed for high data-rate Ka-band

satellite communications uplinks. The BUCs feature higher linear

power in a compact package, which aims to enable system inte-

grators to offer higher data-rate uplinks with rugged, lightweight,

transportable satcom terminals.

They are available in three linear power level configurations:

Model XTLN-25Ka-B1 in 25 watts; Model XTLN-50Ka-B1 in 50

watts; and Model XTLN-75Ka-B1 in 75 watts. All three will be

marketed as upgrades for existing systems that need an addi-

tional 3 decibels to 6 decibels of linear power.

Ericsson RELEASES MPEG-4 VOYAGER 2 SNG SOLUTION

Ericsson unveiled its Voyager 2 scalable satellite newsgathering

product to meet demand for HD news services.

Voyager 2, Ericsson’s fifth-generation digital SNG product, is

built upon a hot-swappable 1RU chassis with color input confi-

dence monitoring and features MPEG-4 AVC 4:2:2 encoding with

10-bit precision at up to 1080p50/60 resolutions. The product

aims to allow users to scale their event coverage from SD to HD

and even multichannel and 3-D, delivered across a multitude of

satellite and terrestrial networks.

Haivision DEBUTS LOW-LATENCY IP VIDEO TRANSCODER

Video network developer Haivision unveiled its Kraken Enterprise

and Kraken ISR low-latency IP transcoding solutions.

The products were designed to optimize video networks for

high-efficiency, low-latency performance. The company said the

solutions are ideal for demanding video delivery applications

within the education, enterprise and military markets.

MeshTV UNVEILS MOBILE BACKPACK VIDEO SYSTEM

MeshTV introduced its MeshTV HD series Intelligent Bonding

compact backpack video system for live stream TV and

Web reporting.

The unit, intended to provide HD broadcasting capabil-

ity from any location, is targeted for news gatherers and live

stream producers to provide a robust dynamic delivery meth-

od, access to today’s multi-screens and a method to mon-

etize content.

Thrane & ThraneUPGRADE ADDS BGAN X-STREAM TO 727 TERMINAL

Thrane & Thrane has upgraded the software of its flagship

Explorer 727 vehicular Inmarsat BGAN terminal to allow the unit

to function as a two-in-one terminal.

The software-only upgrade transforms the Explorer 727 from

an Inmarsat Class 10 terminal into a Class 1 terminal, giving it

the ability to use Inmarsat’s BGAN X-Stream IP streaming service

when stationary. With the upgrade, the Explorer 727 is capable

of streaming live coverage at data rates of at least 384 kbps

from anywhere in the world.

Arqiva TO LAUNCH SHARED MULTIPLEX SERVICE ON AMC-10

Arqiva will launch a DVB-S2, MPEG-4 shared multiplex satel-

lite platform from its Los Angeles teleport, enabling broadcast-

ers and cable programmers access to 100 percent of U.S. cable

headends.

The platform will be available via the SES World Skies’ AMC-

10 satellite located at 135 degrees West and will be powered by

Cisco’s latest-generation MPEG-4 encoding technology.

Marlink UNVEILS VALUE-ADDED SERVICE FOR MARITIME VSAT

Maritime satellite communications provider Marlink is launching

its Local Numbers service from Norway, which will be available

to all customers of Marlink’s Sealink and WaveCall VSAT systems.

The Local Numbers offering combines direct inward dialing

with the local telephone number of the vessel operator’s office

location. The service aims to provide cost-effective calling on

multi-regional and global Ku-band and C-band maritime VSAT

systems, as well as on-demand services such as Inmarsat Fleet-

Broadband, Iridium and Thuraya.

RRsat LAUNCHES PLATFORM ON HISPASAT 1E

RRsat Global Communications Network has implemented its

new multi-carrier per-channel platform on Hispasat’s 1E satellite

at 30 degrees West.

The platform will cater to Latin America, using the downlink,

uplink, space segment and playout services from RRsat’s playout

center in Hawley, Pa. RRsat will broadcast content in SD, HD and

3-D formats to viewers in Latin America capable of receiving dig-

ital television through DTH broadcasting and to digital terrestrial

television operators, DBS operators and cable headends.

Technology 32

Services 32

Contracts 33

Executive Moves 34

SERVICES

Industry At Large


Advantech Wireless

SELECTED BY HOJE TELECOM FOR VSAT UPGRADEAdvantech Wireless signed a contract with Hoje Telecom of Bra-

zil to provide a VSAT upgrade hub, RF equipment and more than

1,000 remote terminals. By 2014, Internet penetration in Brazil

is expected to increase by 79 percent from 2009, and Hoje Tele-

com expects to leverage this growth and provide thousands of

previously unconnected users with Internet access.

EMS

WINS WGS-7 HARDWARE CONTRACT FROM BOEINGEMS Defense & Space received a follow-on contract from Boeing

to design and integrate a power divider and a splitter combiner

assembly for the seventh flight set of the Wideband Global Sat-

com (WGS) satellite architecture.

WGS-7 will support additional X- and Ka-band communica-

tions requirements for U.S. military warfighters. EMS Defense

& Space will provide space, airborne and ground-based appli-

cations as well as its Wavestorm GS-GBS Ka-band receive

antenna aperture designed to enable full data rates from the

WGS constellation and support airborne or ground-based

comms-on-the-move applications across all of the major

X-band constellations.

GlobeCast

SIGNS FIVE-YEAR DISTRIBUTION DEAL WITH EUTELSATGlobeCast concluded a five-year contract with Eutelsat Com-

munications for a third transponder on the Eurobird 9A satellite,

which was selected for its potential to reach more than 5 million

DTH and cable homes.

GlobeCast’s service includes content management, playout

and origination and encoding. Uplink to Eurobird 9A is possible

from Paris, which has connectivity to more than 30 points-of-

presence via GlobeCast’s fiber network.

Intelsat

CAPTURES EUROPEAN CAPACITY DEALSMTV Networks signed a multi-year contract for Intelsat managed

video services that includes Intelsat capacity at 1 degree West,

terrestrial connectivity via the IntelsatOne network and uplink

service via Intelsat’s Fuchsstadt teleport. MTV Networks will use

the managed services to consolidate channel programming into

one platform over Central and Eastern Europe.

CONTRACTS

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For more industry news, sign up for SatelliteTODAY’s

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MORENEWS?

Industry At Large


Eastern Space Systems Romania also

expanded its portfolio at 1 degree West

by signing two multi-year contracts for

Intelsat capacity that will enable video

distribution to cable headends and DTH

platforms in Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova,

Hungary, Macedonia and other Central

and Eastern European countries.

SES World Skies

PROVIDES ENTERPRISE

BROADBAND CAPACITY

SES World Skies signed a deal with Axe-

sat for two transponders on SES’ AMC-4

satellite at 67 degrees West to provide

business voice, data and Internet ser-

vices to companies in Colombia, Peru,

Venezuela, Ecuador, Central America and

the Caribbean.

SES deployed AMC-4 in September

2010 as part of an agreement with the

Andean Community of Nations (CAN)

to deliver high-power Ku-band capac-

ity to the Andean region. This capacity is

enabling the expansion of many voice,

data, Internet and video networks in the

Andean countries, Central America, Mexi-

co and the Caribbean.

Nevion

RESTRUCTURES BUSINESS UNITSNevion split its sales department into two

separate divisions as it looks to enhance

its global presence.

The Media Networks division will

cater to service providers and govern-

ment entities, providing carrier-class

video transport and management

through its Ventura platform. A separate

Broadcast Technology unit will deliver

integrated, broad-based video transport,

routing and processing solutions

to broadcasters.

Newsat

APPOINTS DAVID BALL CTONewSat named David Ball CTO, as Newsat

is increasing the size of its team to capi-

talize on global expansion and because of

the launch of the Jabiru Satellite Program.

Ball recently served as managing director

of Intelsat Broadband Pty. Ltd., a subsid-

iary of Intelsat Corp.

WTA

NAMES OFFICERS, DIRECTORSThe World Teleport Association (WTA)

appointed Arqiva strategy & business

development director Brett Belinsky as

chairman, and named Teleport Interna-

cional Buenos Aires CEO Norberto Alvarez

Vitale secretary general and chief admin-

istrative officer.

Belinsky replaces Chris Russell, co-

founder of Teleport London International,

who is stepping down at the end of his sec-

ond and final term on the WTA board.

dvanced

isionary

eading the way

1994

Original Roto-Lok®

Cable Drive

2001

First Mobile VSAT

2005

First Carry-On Suitcase

AvL

A

v

L

TECHNOLOGIES

des ign s fo r u l t ima te pe r fo rmance

www.avltech.com

EXECUTIVE MOVES


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WEB DIRECTORY

As a result of the overwhelming popularity

of Via Satellite’s Web Directory, our current

advertisers appear in this space. A full version of

satellite companies can be found on our Website at www.viasatellite.com.


Company WebsiteAAE Systems Inc. aaesys.com

Acorde S.A. acorde.com

Advanced Switch Technology astswitch.com

Advantech AMT advantechamt.com

Alcatel alcatel.com/space

Allen Communications alncom.com

Alga Microwave Inc. alga.ca

AMDOCS amdocs.com

American Antenna americanantenna.com

Americom Government Services americom-gs.com

Amplus amplus.biz

Anacom Inc. anacominc.com

Analytical Graphics Inc. stk.com

Andersen Manufacturing Inc. anderseninc.com

Andrew Corp. andrew.com

Antek Systems LLC antek.com

Arianespace arianespace.com

Artel Inc. artelinc.com

ASC Signal Corp. ascsignal.com

Ascent Media ascentmedia.com

Asset Recovery Center assetrecovery.com

Astrotel International LLCastroteleurope.com

astrointernational.comATCi (Antenna Technology Communications Inc.) atci.com

Atlantic Satellite Corp. atlanticsat.com

AvcomRamsey avcomramsey.com

AvL Technologies avltech.com

Azure Shine International Inc. azureshine.com.tw

Boeing boeing.com

CapRock Communications caprock.com

C-Com Satellite Systems Inc. c-comsat.com

Centrex Communications centrexcom.com

Cerona Networks cerona.com

Chelton Inc. chelton.com

Cisco Systems cisco.com

Clear Channel Satellite clearchannelsatellite.com

Codem Systems Inc codem.com

Communications & Energy Corp. cefilter.com

Computer Modules Inc. computermodules.com

Comtech Antenna Systems comtechantenna.com

Comtech EF Data comtechefdata.com

Comtech Mobile Datacom comtechmobile.com

Constellation Networks Corp. constellationnetcorp.com

Conus Communications conus.com

Convergent Media Systems convergent.com

Corporativo Dotcomexico S.A. de C.V. dotcommexico.com

CPI Canada Inc. cpii.com/cmp

CPI Satcom Division cpii.com/satcom

CPI MPP cpii.com/mpp

Crawford Communications crawford.com

Cross Technologies Inc. crosstechnologies.com

Crown Media Inernational crownmedia.net

dBm dbmcorp.com

Desert Sky Digital Satellite Inc. sattruck.com

DEV Systemtechnik GmbH & Co.KG dev-systemtechnik.de

DH Satellite dhsatellite.com

Digicast Networks Inc. digicastnet.com

Digital Voice Systems Inc. dvsinc.com

Company WebsiteDisitron Industries Inc. disitron.com

Diversified Communications Inc. dciteleport.com

Ducommun ductech.com

e2v e2v.com

EADS Space space.eads.net

EASi (Efficient Antenna Systems Inc.) easisat.com

Easy Trading Communications Inc. etcny.net

Echostar echostarfixedsatellite.com

Efficient Channel Coding eccincorp.com

Embedded Consultants LLC embeddedconsult.com

Emerging Markets Communications emc-corp.net

Emcore Corp. emcore.com

Eutelsat eutelsat.com

Evertz Microsystems Ltd. evertz.com

Flextronics Software Systems flextronicssoftware.com

Force Inc. forceinc.com

Foxcom Inc. foxcom.com

General Dynamics Information Systems gd-is.com

General Dynamics IT & Space Solutions gd-ns.com/space

Geosync Microwave geosyncmicrowave.com

Gilat gilat.com

GL Communications Inc. gl.com

Global Communications Solutions Inc. globalcoms.com

Global Digital Media Xchange Inc. gdmxchange.com

Globecomm Systems globecommsystems.com

Glowlink glowlink.com

Gulf Communications International gcigulf.com

HDTV Uplink hdtvuplink.com

Helius Inc. helius.com

Hispasat hispasat.com

Honeywell ERI honeywell.com/satcomprotection

Hughes hughes.com

IDB Systems idbsystems.com

iDirect Technologies idirect.net

ILC ilc.com

Integral Systems Inc.integ.com

integ-europe.comIntelsat General intelsatgeneral.com

International Launch Services ilslaunch.com

Intorel intorel.com

Irdeto Access irdetoaccess.com

ITS Electronics, Inc. itselectronics.com

ITT Industries ittsystems.com

Ironlink Communications ironlinkus.com

J A Taylor & Associates broadcastassociates.com

Jersey Microwave jerseymicrowave.com

JSAT International Inc. jsati.com

Juch-Tech Inc. juch-tech.com

Kayou Communications kayoucommunications.com

Kencast Inc. kencast.com

L-3 Satellite Networks l-3com.com

Linearizer Technology lintech.com

Linksat, Inc. linksat.com

Locus Microwave locusmicrowave.com

Logus Microwave logusmicrowave.com

Longbottom Communications LLC longbottomcommunications.com

Loral Space & Communications loral.com

M2 Global Inc. m2global.com

M&C Systems Inc. mcsys.com

ManSat spaceisle.com

MCL Inc. mcl.com

MicroSpace Communications Corp. microspace.com

Microwave Radio Communications mrcbroadcast.com

Mitec Telecom mitectelecom.com

V IA SATELL ITE MAGAZINE JUNE 2011 37

ADVERTISER INDEX

Advertiser Page

AvL Technologies 34

Azure Shine International 25

CASBAA C3

Comtech EF Data 27

Comtech Xicom Technology 23

CPI Satcom C4

dbm 29

GE Satellite 30

Hughes 5

Advertiser Page

iDirect 11

Integral Systems 9

Intelsat 13

ManSat, LLC 15

MITEQ/MCL 3

Rockwell Collins 33

Sea Tel 2

Walton Enterprises 21

Wavestream 7

Company WebsiteMITEQ miteq.comNabtesco Motion Control Inc nabtescomotioncontrol.comNarda Satellite Networks lnr.comND Satcom ndsatcom.comNew and Used Inc. newandusedinc.comNewSat/Multiemedia newsat.com.auNewpoint Technologies Inc. newpointtech.comNewtec newtec.beNJRC (New Japan Radio Corp.) njr.co.jp/index_e.htmNorthrop Grumman northropgrumman.comNorthStar Studios northstarstudios.tvNPR Satellite Services nprss.orgNTT Electronics nel-world.comOn Call Communications occsat.comOptimal Satcom optimalsatcom.comOrbit orbit-techgroup.comOrtel ortel.comPALS Electronic Co. Ltd. pals.com.trParadise Datacom paradisedata.comPatriot Antenna Systems sepatriot.comPetrocom petrocom.comPolarSat polarsat.comPSSI-USA pssi-usa.comPulse Power & Measurement Ltd. (PPM) vialite.netQuintech quintechelectronics.comRadyne radn.comRainbow Network Communications rncnetwork.comResearch Concepts Inc. researchconcepts.comRockwell Collins rockwellcollins.comRussian Satellite Communications Co. (RSCC) rscc.ruSAT Corp. sat.comSATELLITE 2011 SATELLITE2011.comSatellite Today satellitetoday.comSatellite Engineering Group sateng.comSatellite Systems Corp. satsyscorp.comSat-Lite Technologies sat-litetech.comSatmex satmex.comSatService GmbH satservicegmbh.deSea-Cell Inc. seacellsatellite.com Sea Launch sea-launch.comSeatel seatel.comSector Microwave sectormicrowave.comSivers Lab AB siverslab.seSES Americom ses-americom.comSES Global ses.com

Company WebsiteShiron Satellite Communications shiron.comSingTel Optus Pty Ltd optus.com.au/satelliteSKY Perfect JSAT Corp. sptvjsat.com/enSkyWeb Inc. skydigital.comSojitz Corporation of America myvsat.comSophia Wireless Inc. sophiawireless.com Spacecom amos-spacecom.comSpacenet spacenet.comSpace Star Technology (Group) Corp. space-star.comSpace Systems/Loral ssloral.comSPC Electronics America Inc. spcamerica.comST Electronics Pte Ltd. stee.stengg.com/satcomsStarling Advanced Communications starling-com.comSTM Group stmi.comSuperior Satellite Engineers superiorsatelliteusa.comSWE-DISH Satellite Systems swe-dish.comSystems Technology stainc.comTampa Microwave Lab Inc. tmli.comTeleCommunication Systems telecomsys.comTeleSpectra telespectra.comTelinc Corp. telinc.comTerrasat Communications Inc. terrasatinc.comThales thales-bm.comThrane & Thrane us.thrane.comThe SpaceConnection thespaceconnection.comUltra Electronics-DNE Technologies ultra-dne.comUnlimi-Tech Software Inc. utechsoft.comUplit exceedthefeed.comVerso Technologies verso.comViasat viasat.comVia Satellite magazine viasatellite.comVislink Group vislink.co.ukVizada vizada.comWarner Bros. Entertainment Inc. warnerbros.comWavestream wavestream.comW.B. Walton Enterprises Inc. de-ice.comW.C. & A.N. Miller wcanmiller.comWegener wegener.comWork GmbH Satcom work-gmbh.deWorldsat International Inc. worldsat.comXicom Technology xicomtech.comXipLink xiplink .com


DOLLARS AND SENSE

Owen D. Kurtin is a

practicing attorney

in New York City

and a founder and

principal of private

investment firm The

Vinland Group LLC.

He may be reached

at okurtin@

kurtinlaw.com.

The U.S. Space Shuttle program will come to a close

this year, a little more than 30 years after its inaugural

flight, with the last flight scheduled for late June. Always

a technological marvel and never an economic one, the

shuttle reminds us of another beautiful white bird now

seen only in museums, the Concorde. Some analysts

ask why the United States never developed a successor

reusable space plane, just as some ask why, the Concorde

excepted, commercial aviation has remained stuck at

the roughly 500- to 600-knot cruising airspeed (1,000

kilometers per hour), 35,000-foot (21,000-meter) altitude

performance parameters in the 50-odd years since the

Boeing 707 entered service.

The two cases, while superficially similar, could not

be more different. Civil airliners are a mature tech-

nology that has become incredibly reliable. Airliners

are like elevators, which haul millions of people hun-

dreds of feet up in the air and down again with virtu-

ally no fatalities. The space shuttle, despite its pro-

saic official STS (Space Transportation System) title

and promise of economic efficiency, reusability and

rapid turnaround, remained an experimental space-

craft. The orbiters were finicky to refurbish between

flights, particularly the notorious heat-ablating tiles

on the lower fuselage, wings and nose; uneconomic,

and always potentially deadly, with one take-off and

one re-entry accident destroying two of the five opera-

tional shuttles and costing the lives of their crew in just

over 130 flights. None of that denigrates the science

and space operational knowledge and heritage gained

during the shuttle years, highlighted by missions such

as the repair of the Hubble telescope and the building

of the International Space Station. But the fact remains

that the program never delivered

on the basis it was sold to its inves-

tors — the U.S. taxpayers.

Civil aviation has not advanced

because the public accepts its oper-

ating parameters (New York to Lon-

don or Paris takes six hours) and

might not accept a new generation

of aircraft that pushed the perfor-

mance envelope but which might

have a far higher rate of accidents and loss of life. Reus-

able space plane technology has not advanced because,

in terms of what was promised, we did not really get

it right the first time, and there is no certainty that the

enormous investment required for a second-generation

space shuttle would produce a better result. If econom-

ics and efficiencies had improved during the 30 years

of operations, the argument for a second generation

would be more easily made. But that is not the case.

The tacit admission of that is why NASA’s cancelled —

or partially cancelled — Constellation crew transport

system visibly — even to a layman’s eyes — looked back

to the Apollo program.

Apparently, this is not a time for grand gestures.

The U.S. is spending $2 billion a week in Afghanistan,

while always having enough cash on hand to bail out

financial institutions and automakers at public expense,

lest their bondholders actually find out that invest-

ments can be risky. At the same time, NASA has been

forced to cut its flagship interplanetary space probe

program for want of approximately $24 billion; its

April announcement of the second round of the Com-

mercial Crew Development (CCDev2) awards to four

companies totaled less than $270 million, and those

craft that are actually built will not be operational

before mid-decade (some of the CCDev2 winners’ and

runners-ups’ proposals also visibly hark back to the

Apollo legacy). It is a dispiriting state of affairs, espe-

cially for anyone who believes that moral hazard and

creative destruction are twin pillars of a healthy capi-

talist economic system.

When the Apollo program and its Apollo-Soyuz and

Skylab follow-ons ended, the United States was without

means of human access to space for a few years. But

the space shuttle was in development, and at the time,

it held the promise of a new generation of exploration

and colonization of space. It did not work out complete-

ly as promised, but it was a heroic project, peopled by

heroic flight crews and ground crews.

So goodbye to the Space Shuttle. It belonged to the

tail-end of a more heroic age, and it is perhaps fitting

that in this newer age, NASA has nothing to replace it,

much less succeed it.

Goodbye to the Space Shuttle

By Owen D. Kur t in

Organised by Sponsors

Top slots at the 11th Singapore Satellite Industry Forum

Headliners:

Dave McGlade, CEO, Intelsat

Romain Bausch, President & CEO, SES

Bill Wade, President & CEO, AsiaSat

Speakers:

Simon Cathcart, CEO, Fetch TV

Andrew Jordan, President & CEO, GE Satellite

Paul Brown-Kenyon, COO, MEASAT

Inoue Osamu, Senior EVP, SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation

Tom Choi, CEO, ABS

Cheng Guanreng, CEO, APT Satellite

Mohamed Youssif, CEO, YahLive

Eddie Kato, CEO, Thales Alenia Space North America

Fu Zhiheng, VP & GM, Launch Services, CGWIC

David Ball, CTO, NewSat

Robert Feierbach, SVP, Sales & Marketing, Hughes Network Systems

Andrew Taylor, CEO, Pactel International

Ian Ford, VP & GM, SE Asia, Harris CapRock Communications

Andrew Wallace, Chief Commercial Officer, Eutelsat

Huang Bao Zhong, VP, APT Satellite

Elias Zaccack, VP Sales, AP, SES World Skies

Jay Yass, VP, Global Accounts, Intelsat

Chris Bauer, VP Commercial Sales, SpaceX

Gary Hale, Space Initiative Manager, GGSG, Cisco

Brett Belinsky, Strategy Director, Broadcast & Media, Arqiva

Gregg Daffner, Senior Advisor - Asia, Echostar International

STAY CONNECTED, STAY INFORMED!

Date: Monday, 20 June

Venue: Shangri-La Singapore

For registration: For sponsorship:

Agnes Chan Maggie Leung

E: [email protected] E: [email protected]

CASBAA Singapore

Satellite Industry Forum 2011Taking Care of Business

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