Satellite is spreading its wings. The sector appears to be aligning itself with other wireless technologies in hopes of becoming a significant part of a hybrid wireless network.
John Kealey, chief executive officer of iDirect, a networking equipment company that makes routers that allow customers to access broadband communications via satellite, said he has seen this move toward hybrid networks through his company’s sales.
iDirect sells its Internet Protocol-based routers to network operators, which then offer them to government and enterprise customers, enabling access to voice, data and video from anywhere via satellite networks. End users include oil and gas corporations, construction companies and financial services companies as well as the military.
iDirect’s routers are secure, reliable and efficiently manage bandwidth, according to Kealey. “We have developed algorithms that allow us to accelerate traffic across the satellite,” he said. The routers are also “satellite indifferent,” meaning they work on any satellite, creating an expansive coverage area for end users.
Going forward, Kealey envisions corporations will employ satellite systems-not as standalone networks, but as part of a company’s overall communication network that likely includes both wired and wireless networks. Large, multi-national corporations, especially those with offices in remote areas and those employing mobile workers would be ideal customers for such a hybrid network.
iDirect is seeing success with customers like the military, which purchased equipment to access data via satellite and now wants to also receive voice via satellite. In addition, some users that built out satellite as an interim solution in war-torn places like Africa and Iraq, are realizing its potential as part of a permanent solution.
The challenge, according to Kealey, is to improve performance of satellite networks and equipment while driving down costs. “This is a never-ending journey,” he said, but added he expects significant service improvements during the next 12 to 24 months.
A market survey issued last fall by Northern Sky Research supports Kealey’s vision of a hybrid network that includes satellite technology. The survey concluded that disappointing growth in the satellite access market has led satellite companies to pursue alternative models of broadband delivery. Northern Sky points to Wi-Fi technology as a potential partner for satellite service, noting its low cost and continuing popularity. According to the research firm, there are more than 1,000 satellite-based hot spots today, and that number likely will grow to 95,000 in the next five years.
Northern Sky expects satellite-Wi-Fi integration to be used for Internet access to rural and remote communities, enterprise and military video applications, maritime deployments, Internet access to passenger trains and voice-over-IP over Wi-Fi technology.
“With satellite-based access services only experiencing modest growth, it is clear that alternative models such as satellite-Wi-Fi will become increasingly important to satellite companies,” explained Christopher Baugh, president of Northern Sky and the report’s author. “The marriage of satellite backbone and Wi-Fi access enables efficient broadband access to any location in the world. This new model also enables new broadband applications, such as Internet to trains and in-flight Internet, which have not been effectively provisioned over existing infrastructure.”
“While hurdles such as Wi-Fi coverage limitations, short-term ROI and competing broadband wireless standards do exist, the low cost and easy plug-and-play nature of Wi-Fi technology make it too compelling for satellite companies to pass up today,” added Baugh.
Indeed, another potential area of growth for satellite operators lies in the airline industry. Companies including Boeing Co. and Tenzing Communications Inc. are offering in-flight Internet access and e-mail services to airline passengers via networks that at least partially rely on satellites.
Boeing’s airline partners for its Connexion by Boeing service include Lufthansa, All Nippon Airways, China Airlines, Japan Airlines, Scandinavian Airlines System and Singapore Airlines. Boeing has leased space satellites owned by Intelsat, Eutelsat and Space Communications Corp. to enhance its network.
Tenzing’s airline partners include Cathay Pacific Airways, Continental Airlines, Emirates, Iberia, Northwest Airlines, United Airlines and Virgin Atlantic Airways. The Tenzing system uses an onboard mail server that communicates with satellites or through a cellular system and then to the ground.
In another application of satellite technology, EDS recently announced its IP-over-satellite technology will allow oceanographer Robert Ballard to communicate in real time while exploring the wrecked R.M.S. Titanic. The network will allow Ballard to broadcast audio and video from his research vessel, the Ronald H. Brown, while it is docked in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean above the Titanic’s wreckage.
Globalstar
In other recent news in the satellite sector, mobile satellite services provider Globalstar announced it has completed its financial restructuring and will emerge from bankruptcy following the closing of the acquisition of its main business operations and assets by Thermo Capital Partners L.L.C.
Following the acquisition, which was announced in December, Thermo owns 81.25 percent of a newly formed Globalstar in exchange for an investment of $43 million, with the remainder of the equity to be distributed to the creditors of the original Globalstar L.P.
“Despite its slow start, Globalstar-now in its fifth year of uninterrupted service-is by far the best positioned, with the best technology, to take advantage of the opportunities in the mobile satellite market, by increasing our attention on Globalstar’s customers and their communication needs.” said Jim Lynch, managing director of Thermo.
Thermo also recently announced several new business initiatives and strategies for Globalstar. The company plans to prepare eight spare satellites in storage for launch, possibly in late 2005 or early 2006. Thermo also plans to sign a lease agreement for a new Globalstar gateway in Florida. That gateway, along with a fourth antenna to be added at its Las Palmas, Puerto Rico, gateway, will bolster coverage and capacity in the Caribbean. The company plans to resume product development programs, which will include introducing fax capability, and develop new data services, including a new data compression service. Finally, the company is exploring building a new gateway in Alaska to better serve the state and offshore regions in the North Pacific and Bering Strait.
