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January 2006 SATMAGAZINE.COM

Vol. 3 No. 9, January 2006

TABLE OF CONTENTSClick on the title to go

directly to the story

COCOCOCOCOVER STVER STVER STVER STORORYYY

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REGULAR DEPREGULAR DEPREGULAR DEPREGULAR DEPREGULAR DEPARTMENTARTMENTARTMENTARTMENTARTMENTSSSSS

By Howard Greenfield By Chris Forrester

3 / Notes from theEditor

4 / Calendar of Events5 / Featured Event:

ISCe 20066 / Industry News41 / Regional Update

11 / Executive Moves15 / New Products and

Services38 / Market Intelligence36 / Vital Statistics42 / Advertisers’ Index /

Stock Quotes

by Dan McCrary

FEATURES CASE STUDYCASE STUD

23 / SES Expands Its Orbit Again

19 / Satellite and IT:At the DigitalCrossroads

30 / RTViExpandsRevenueOpportunitiesand ReducesExpensesUsing thePublic Internet

37 / ATCi CEOGary Hatch

EXECUTIVE SPOTLIGHTEXECUTIVE SPOTLIGHTEXECUTIVE SPOTLIGHTEXECUTIVE SPOTLIGHTEXECUTIVE SPOTLIGHT

Information Technology (IT)is playing a more pivotalrole in satellite technologytoday.

SES Global’s purchase ofNew Skies Satellites ischanging the face of theindustry. The deployment of Path

1 IP video gatewaysenabled RTVI to save90% of costs of satelliteusage.

Satnews Managing EditorVirgil Labrador spoke withATCi CEO Gary Hatch onhis views on how 2005went and prospects for2006.

By Alan Gottlieb

27 / Is AutomatedSatelliteNetworkManagementa NewCompetitiveAdvantage?

In a market where satellitebandwidth has become acommodity, how canoperators achieve productdifferentiation, add valueand enhance theirofferings?

33 / Satellites and IT– Mythsand Realitiesby Bruce Elbert

VIEWPOINTVIEWPOINTVIEWPOINTVIEWPOINTVIEWPOINT

IT Managers should learn how toestablish the connection betweensatellites and IT.

SATMAGAZINE.COM

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January 2006

Satnews Publishers is the leadingprovider of information on theworldwide satellite industry. Foremore information, go towww.satnews.com

Cover Design by: Simon Payne

Published monthly bySatnews Publishers800 Siesta Way,Sonoma, CA 95476 USAPhone (707) 939-9306Fax (707) 939-9235E-mail: [email protected]: www.satmagazine.com

Baden WoodfordContributing Writer, Africa

Jill Durfee([email protected])Advertising Sales

Joyce Schneider([email protected])Advertising Sales

Copyright © 2006Satnews PublishersAll rights reserved.

EDITORIALSilvano PaynePublisher

Virgil LabradorManaging Editorand Editor, North America

Chris ForresterEditor, Europe, Middle Eastand Africa

Bernardo SchneidermanEditor, Latin America

Peter GalaceEditor, Asia-Pacific

John Puetz, Bruce ElbertDan Freyer, Howard GreenfieldContributing Writers,The Americas

David Hartshorn, Martin JarroldContributing Writers, Europe

NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

The Pieces are Finally ComingTogether

Just before the holidays, global satellite operator SES GLOBAL announced its purchase of the

assets of erstwhile Intelsat spin-off, New Skies Satellites.SES GLOBAL which lost it’s number one spot as the largestglobal satellite operator when Intelsat announced earlier itspurchase of PanAmSat. SES GLOBAL’s purchase of NewSkies still does not make it back to the no. 1 spot, but it willcertainly strengthen its position in Europe, Latin America

and Asia.

SES Global made a logical move by taking over New Skies. Intelsat isprevented by the ORBIT Act of 2000 from reacquiring New Skies, which itspun off in 1998.

We are finally seeing the denouement of the process of consolidation thatstarted a few years ago. There are now only two satellite operators withglobal coverage—Intelsat and SES Global (there used to be five before themergers). The competition is going to be fierce. Who’s next? Do I hearEutelsat?

Meanwhile, in this issue, we look at another important piece of the satellitepuzzle--the relationship between satellite technology and informationtechnology (IT). IT has become more and more indispensable componentof any satellite service. In our cover story by Howard Greenfield, heprovides a comprehensive view on the relationship between satellites andIT. Bruce Elbert in his Viewpoint column (page 33) dispels many of themyths surrounding this important aspect of satellite technology.

As with many businesses, IT is driving satellite technology to the nextlevel.

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JJJJJANUANUANUANUANUARARARARARYYYYYJanuary 15-18, Honolulu, Hawaii USA PTC’06Shift Happens: Transition to IPDolores FungTel.: +1.808.941.3789, ext.120 / E-mail: [email protected]: http://www.ptc06.org

February 6-9, Washington, D.C.Satellite 2006Rick FelperinTel: +1-301-354-1691Email: [email protected]: www.satellite2006.com

February 20-24, Johannesburg, South AfricaSatcom Africa 2006Candice ZietsmanTel: +27 11 516 4066 / Fax: +27 11 707 8342Email: [email protected]: www.satcomafrica.com

March 7-9, Dubai, United Arab EmiratesCABSAT 2006David LimTel: +971 4 308 6012 / +971 4 332 1000Fax: +971 4 332 2866 / 331 8034Email:[email protected]: www.cabsat.com

March 21-23, New Delhi, IndiaConvergence India 2006Tel.: 91 - 11 - 5279 5000 / Fax.: 91 - 11- 5279 5098/99E-mail: [email protected] Website:www.convergenceindia.org

April 22-27, Las Vegas, NevadaNAB 2006Tel: +45 3815 3332 / 202-429-5300 Fax: 202-429-4199Email: [email protected] / Website: www.nab.org

May 4-5, Copenhagen Business School, Copenhagen,DenmarkEuropean Satellite Cultures ConferenceJulie UldamTel: +45 3815 3332 / Email: [email protected]: www.cbs.dk/esc

June 13-15, San Diego Hilton Resort at Mission Bay, SanDiego, CA, USAISCe Conference and ExpoHannover Fairs USAPhone: +1 310 410 9191 / Fax: +1 310 410 9396Email: [email protected] / Website: www.isce.com

June 20-23, SingaporeCommunicAsia 2006Tel: +65 6738 6776 / Fax: +65 6732 6776Email: [email protected]: www.communicasia.com

Aug. 22-26, Beijing, ChinaBIRTV 2006Tel: +86 10 86093207 or 86092783 ext. 801Fax: +86 10 86093790 , Email: [email protected]: www.birtv.com/english/about.asp

Oct. 19 - 21, World Trade Centre, Mumbai, India.Broadcast India 2006 Exhibition & SymposiumKavita MeerTel: 91 22 2215 1396/2215 2721Fax: 91 22 2215 1269 / Mobile: 98200 56060Email: [email protected]: www.broadcastindiashow.com

FEBRFEBRFEBRFEBRFEBRUUUUUARARARARARYYYYY

MARCHMARCHMARCHMARCHMARCH

APRILAPRILAPRILAPRILAPRIL

MAMAMAMAMAYYYYY

JUNEJUNEJUNEJUNEJUNE

AAAAAUGUSTUGUSTUGUSTUGUSTUGUST

OCTOCTOCTOCTOCTOBEROBEROBEROBEROBER

http://www.isce.com

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December 2005

FEATURED EVENT

SM

Celebrating it’s fifth year anniversary, ISCe, which has carveda niche as a must-attend event in the satellite industry, will

be jointly holding the 5th Annual ISCe Conference and Expo withthe 23rd American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics(AIAA) International Communications Satellite SystemsConference (ICSSC) from June 13-15 at the San Diego HiltonResort in San Diego, California.

The partnership with AIAA will bring together two majorinternationalsatelliteconferences in onevenue. The jointconference bringmany synergiesbetween the twoprograms in termsof content,speakers and alarger pool ofattendees from all

sectors of the industry. The partnership with AIAA is the latestaddition to ISCe’s growing program lineup that includes jointprograms with the Carmel Group’s Cable, Satellite and TelcoEntertainment Forum, the World Teleport Association (WTA)’sTranslating the Trends Workshop , and the Global VSATForum’s Wireless Forum. ISCe is also supported by theWashington D.C.-based Satellite Industry Association (SIA),whose Executive Director, David Cavossa will be presenting it’sannual “State of the Industry” Report at ISCe.

“Hannover Fairs USA is pleased to be working with AIAA on thejoint ISCe and ICSSC programs,” said Joachim Schaffer,President, Hannover Fairs USA, organizers of ISCe. “The jointprogram will allow both the satellite engineering and businessdevelopment communities to interact and discuss the key issues,policies, challenges and opportunities facing the satelliteindustry under one roof,” he added.

ISCe 2006 will be focusing on Satellite and Hybrid Solutions forthe enterprise, entertainment and media, and government/military markets. The conference will focus on the value and

cost-effective solutions that satellite and hybrid networks (cable,telcos and utilities) provide to the end users.

As in its previous successful conferences, ISCe 2006 will featureleading industry speakers in a comprehensive conferenceprogram that includes the following key components:

• GVF Wireless Forum

• Space & Security Forum

• WTA Translating the Trends Workshop

• Carmel Group’s Cable, Satellite & TelcoEntertainment Forum

• Digital Content & Mobile Forum

• Military & Government Requirements Forum

• Retail Enterprise & Business Forum

• Global Business & Financial Outlook Forum

In addition, ISCe 2006 will continue to have innovative featuressuch as their “Product Demonstration Program” and manynetworking events including the Annual ISCe Awards Dinner.

Apart from the new venue and an expandedschedule, Hannover Fairs has also added newstaff to spearhead preparations for ISCe 2006.The dynamic David Bross joined HannoverFairs last November as director of businessdevelopment and vice-chairman of ISCe. Brosswill be responsible for program developmentand exhibit and sponsorship sales for ISCe.Before joining HFUSA, Bross was responsiblefor advertising sales at Space News, a leading space industrypublication, and prior to that he was conference chairman for theSatellite Conference in Washington, D.C.

For more information on ISCe 2006 go to www.isce.com or call+1-310-410-9191 or e-mail: [email protected]

ISCe 2006 Expands Program with Joint-Conference with AIAA

ISCe Conference and Expo 2006

June 13-15, 2006, San Diego Hilton Resort at Misson Bay, California

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SES Global to Acquire New Skiesfor $760-M

BETZDORF, Luxembourg — SES Global S.A., the world’ssecond largest satellite group and operator, has agreed to buyNew Skies Satellites Holdings Ltd. for $760 million to expandcoverage in Asia and the Middle East.

According to a Dec. 15 joint press statement, SES Global willacquire 100 percent of New Skies by way of a merger underBermudian law for $22.52 per share in cash for a total paymentfor the equity of New Skies in the amount of $760 million.

In addition SES will take over debts of New Skies amounting to$400 million putting New Skies Satellites’ enterprise value at$1.16 billion.

New Skies, a Bermudian company with its main operatingsubsidiary headquartered in The Hague, The Netherlands, is theworld’s fifth largest satellite operator based on transpondercapacity, with five spacecraft positioned at strategic orbitallocations around the globe and an additional satellite due forlaunch in 2006. For the twelve months ended September 30,2005, New Skies generated revenues of $232.9 million.

With its acquisition of New Skies, SES will be expanding itscurrent satellite portfolio of 40 by five additional satellites,whose footprints though they appear in Asia, Africa and theMiddle East and will help SES strengthen its position in LatinAmerica. SES said the integration of New Skies’ satellite assetswill notably extend SES’ presence in India, the Middle East andAfrica as well as in Latin America, allowing SES better to meetits customers’ requirements for global service offerings. Thecombination would also firm up SES as the second largestglobal satellite operator behind the combined Intelsat-Panamsat.

In addition, New Skies’ customers will benefit from the expan-sion capacity, redundancy and broad service offerings providedby the larger SES fleet and organization, the two companiessaid.

New Skies’ existing business mix also is also expected toenhance SES’ video-centric core business by strengthening itsvideo, data and government segments. In the governmentservices market, New Skies’ position as a satellite capacityprovider to a range of government customers is a strongcomplement to the comprehensive capabilities of SES’Americom Government Services in this important and fast-growing market. The transaction, SES said, will allow the

company to reduce its reliance on third-party capacity forgovernment services in certain regions of the world and,moreover, allow for synergies with respect to operating ex-penses across the business more broadly.

AMC-23 Telecoms Satellite Launchedfrom Baikonur, Kazakhstan

PARIS — The AMC-23 communi-cations satellite was successfullylaunched on Dec. 29 fromBaikonur in Kazakhstan. Thesatellite, dedicated to the U.S.operator SES Americom, an SESGlobal company, was launched byInternational Launch Services ona Proton Breeze M rocket.

The satellite will provide high-speed broadband services tocommercial airline passengersthroughout the Pacific region. Inaddition, the 18 transponder C-band payloads will be available tobroadcasters, cable programmers,Internet service providers,government agencies, educationalinstitutions, carriers and private

networks for next generation distribution solutions and connec-tivity to North America and Pacific Rim.

Alcatel Alenia Space, manufacturer of AMC-23, said this hybridC/Ku-band satellite has been designed to meet the particularrequirements of Americom’s customer, Connexion by Boeing,and will provide high-speed broadband services to commercialairline passengers throughout the Pacific region.

Alcatel added AMC-23 is the fourth Spacebus satellite deliveredto SES Americom in seven years and the fourth Spacebus 4000telecommunication satellite to be launched this year.

The Proton launcher lifted off at 8:28 a.m. December 29 localtime at the Baikonur space center (9:28 p.m. Wednesday EST,02:28 Thursday GMT). After about nine hours and 20 minutes,the satellite separated from the Breeze M upper stage andentered a transfer orbit. Following a few weeks of maneuversand in-orbit tests, the satellite will provide services throughoutthe Pacific Ocean region.

INDUSTRY NEWS

A Proton launch vehiclewith AMC-23 on boardlifts off at 9:28 pm ESTon Dec. 29 fromBaikonur. (ILS photo)

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Inmarsat Launches BGAN Service

LONDON — Inmarsatlaunched on Dec.7, its Broad-band Global Area Network(BGAN) billed as the world’sfirst mobile communicationsservice to provide both voiceand broadband data simulta-neously through a trulyportable device on a globalbasis. It is also the first to offerguaranteed IP data rates ondemand.

Delivered via the Inmarsat-4satellites, the service is initiallyavailable across Europe, Africa,the Middle East and Asia.

Inmarsat took six years todevelop the BGAN service. Following the successful launch ofInmarsat’s second I-4 satellite on November 8, network cover-age will be extended to North and South America from secondquarter of 2006. The two I-4 satellites will deliver seamlessbroadband coverage across 85 percent of the world’s landmassand be available to 98 percent of the world’s populationaccording to Inmarsat.

“BGAN delivers broadband where other networks can’t,” saidMichael Butler, Inmarsat’s chief operating officer. “It enablesanyone to set up a broadband mobile office in minutes andremain fully productive - wherever they are on the planet.”

BGAN offers IP data speeds of up to 492kbps, with the optionof guaranteed data rates up to 256kbps. The service is designedfor mobile users who want dependable, secure broadbandaccess when working in locations with an unreliable or non-existent telecoms infrastructure.

BGAN also enables users to access their corporate network viaa secure VPN connection, use e-mail and other office applica-tions, browse the Internet, send large file attachments, streamvideo or audio - and make a phone call at the same time. It alsosupports a range of encryption standards for secure communi-cations.

The service is accessed through a range of lightweight satelliteterminals - the smallest is about half the size of a laptop. BGAN

terminals can be connected in minutes using wired or wirelessconnections, including Bluetooth and WLAN 802.11b. BGANcan be used by single users or small teams wherever andwhenever reliable voice and broadband data communicationsare needed.

“Once again, through Inmarsat’s ongoing commitment toinnovation, we have established a new benchmark for ourindustry,” said Michael Butler. “Today’s launch marks a keymilestone in our vision to deliver broadband for a mobileplanet.”

The company unveiled the new service to the world in a jointpress briefing with representatives of its Distribution Partnersand manufacturers at its London HQ.

Intelsat Partners with APT Satelliteto Serve Asia-Pacific

HONG KONG — Intelsat Limited and APT Satellite CompanyLimited, a subsidiary of APT Satellite Holdings Limited, signedon December 5 a strategic cooperation agreement to worktogether using their combined satellite fleets.

In a signing ceremony at the Island Shangri-La Hotel here, thetwo companies agreed to market each other’s satellite capacityand ground resources, as well as to provide broadcast andtelecommunications services to the Asia Pacific region, includ-ing China.

This strategic move will allow Intelsat, as well as its media andcorporate data customers, to access the Asia Pacific marketthrough APT Satellite’s two newly launched satellites, Apstar 5and Apstar 6. APT Satellite will have access to Intelsat’scapacity in other regions of the world via Intelsat’s fleet of 28satellites, thereby expanding APT Satellite’s reach and giving itthe ability to seamlessly carry its customers’ traffic whereverthey may need service. As part of the alliance, the two compa-nies have agreed to explore additional growth initiatives in theAsia-Pacific region, including China.

Ni Yifeng, executive director and president of APT Satellite, saidthe strategic alliance will significantly strengthen APT Satellite’sand Intelsat’s sales and marketing functions in the region. “Thealliance will also enable APT Satellite to provide more compre-hensive services to its customers,” he said.

“We believe that the agreement with APT positions us well totake advantage of any new business initiatives or opportunities

INDUSTRY NEWS

The launch of Inmarsat-4 F2 communicationssatellite on Nov. by SeaLaunch Co.

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INDUSTRY NEWS

that arise in the Asia Pacific region, including China, over thenear and longer terms,” said David McGlade, CEO of Intelsat.He said entering into the agreement creates value at thecompany and customer levels and enables Intelsat to expand itsservice offerings in the region while creating a new avenue forcustomers of both companies to seamlessly take their trafficinto or out of the region.

Structural Damage Holds Falcon 1Rocket Launch; Maiden Flight Movedto January EL SEGUNDO, CA — A fuel tank barrel section that deformeddue to faulty pressurization valve had been cited as theapparent cause of the second postponement of the inaugurallaunch of SpaceX’s Falcon 1 rocket on Dec. 20. Due to high winds, launch controllers placed the countdown onhold and technicians began draining the fuel tank. SpaceX saidthat as fuel was drained from the first stage tank, a faultypressurization valve produced a vacuum in the tank, causingthe fuel tank barrel section to deform and suck inward. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk emphasized that the root cause of theproblem is an electrical fault with a valve, not structural design.He added there appears to no damage was sustained to thevehicle or the satellite, SpaceX said, although the rocket will belowered down and placed in the company’s hangar for furtherinspection. The setback came during the second countdown for theinaugural launch for Space Exploration Technologies. The firstlaunch try on November 26 was stopped because of an incor-rectly set vent valve that allowed liquid oxygen to escape from aground storage tank. After the launch was scrubbed, SpaceX said it will also doanother full review of all the vehicle systems, including propul-sion, structures, avionics, software and ground supportsystems. ”We expect that the earliest that launch would occur islate January,” the company said. A day before the Dec. 19 scheduled launch, SpaceX said allsystems have passed their prelaunch checkout, assuring thepress it had also improved and upgraded the countdownsequence in several ways.

SpaceX said it now has morecomputer controlled opera-tions vs. manual, it improvedground support equipment toload propellant/pressurantfaster, it worked with rangesafety to speed up checkoutof the thrust terminationsystem, and changed tosimultaneous load of auxiliaryliquid oxygen (LOX) and fuelon both stages. Falcon 1 is a two-stage rocketpowered by liquid oxygen andkerosene and is being billed asthe first privately developed,liquid-fuelled rocket to reachorbit and the world’s first all-

new orbital rocket in more than a decade. At $6.7-million, Falcon1 could be the lowest cost per flight to orbit of any launchvehicle, according to the company. SpaceX is developing a family of launch vehicles intended toreduce the cost and increase the reliability of access to spaceultimately by a factor of ten. With the Falcon 1, Falcon 5 andFalcon 9 launch vehicles, SpaceX aspires to offer light, mediumand heavy lift capabilities.

Russia, Indonesia to Study JointSatellite Program

KUALA LUMPUR — Russia and Indonesia signed on Decem-ber 15 an agreement to study the possibility of developing atelecommunications satellite as well as a ground control stationto provide the most advanced multimedia services on Russia,Indonesia and the Asia-Pacific region.

The agreement between Russian Satellite CommunicationsCompany (RSCC) and PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk wassigned as one of the sidelights during the just-concludedRussia-Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit held inMalaysia.

According to RSCC, the orbital position for the satellite and itsparameters are to be specified in the course of further coopera-tion of the operators. The spacecraft is envisioned to cater togrowing customer demands in reliable and available digital TV

Falcon 1 on Launch Pad inKwajalein.

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INDUSTRY NEWS

services, Internet access, and other interactive applications inRussia and Asian countries.

“The international cooperation allows us to more efficientlydevelop national telecommunications networks providing anequal availability of up-to-date satellite communicationsservices to the population. Broad experience in the field ofdeveloping and operating the satellite constellation enables usto plan business diversification,” said Yuri Izmailov, RSCC’acting director general.

Ariane 5 Successfully LaunchesIndia’s Insat-4A, Europe’s MSG-2

KOUROU, French Guiana — Arianespace’s Ariane 5 completedits dual-satellite mission on Dec. 21successfully launching

India’s Insat-4A communications satellite and Europe’s MSG-2weather satellite.

Lifting off from Europe’s Spaceport at the start of its 28-minutelaunch window, the Ariane 5 Generic vehicle deployed Insat-4A first – releasing it in geostationary transfer orbit at justover 29 minutes into the flight. Approximately seven minuteslater, the European MSG-2 second-generation Meteosatspacecraft was also injected into geostationary transfer orbit.

Ground tracking stations immediately received the firsttelemetry signals from Insat-4A and MSG-2, confirming thatboth passengers were in good condition after their ride aboardAriane 5.

Arianespace said ground tracking stations immediatelyreceived the first telemetry signals from Insat-4A and MSG-2,


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confirming that both passengers were in good condition aftertheir ride aboard Ariane 5.

The three-axis stabilized Insat 4A carries a mixed payload of 12Ku-band and 12 C-band transponders, and is the first in India’snew Insat 4A telecommunications spacecraft series that willprovide coverage over the Indian subcontinent. It was de-signed, built and integrated by the Indian Space ResearchOrganisation (ISRO), and it had a liftoff mass of approximately3,200 kg.

The MSG-2 platform is a spin-stabilized spacecraft developedby Alcatel Alenia Space to provide high-resolution images ofthe Earth’s weather activity for the European MeteorologicalSatellite organization (Eumetsat). The 2,034-kg. satellite also willmeasure the planet’s radiation balance for information onclimate change.

Arianespace CEO Jean-Yves Le Gall said the nextAriane 5 mission is set forFebruary 21. This will beanother dual-satelliteflight, using the heavy-liftAriane 5 ECA version toloft Hot Bird 7A forEutelsat and the Spainsatspacecraft for Hisdesat.

The Arianespace CEO alsoconfirmed that Starsem’syear-ending Soyuz missionis on schedule for liftofffrom Kazakhstan.

The Ariane 5 rocket blasts offfrom Arianespace’s Kouroulaunch pad. (ESA/CNES/Arianespace photo) SM

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EXECUTIVE MOVES

Northrop Appoints John F. OlesakVice President of Space andIntelligence

MCLEAN, Va. — NorthropGrumman Corporation hasnamed John F. Olesak vicepresident of space and intelli-gence for the company’sInformation Technology (IT)sector.

As vice president of space andintelligence, Olesak will developand direct innovative geospatialsolutions and services includingsystems engineering, integrationand tactical operations supportfor the defense and intelligencecommunities, Northrop said.

“John has been an integral part of Northrop Grumman’s intelli-gence unit for nearly 15 years and has effectively deliveredenterprise-level integration and interoperability engineeringsolutions to our customers,” said Sidney Fuchs, president ofNorthrop Grumman IT’s TASC business unit.

“In this new role, John’s expertise and leadership will helpinfluence the scope of the geospatial intelligence solutions thatwe provide to the U.S. government, military, homeland securityand intelligence agencies.”

Olesak earned a bachelor’s degree in business administrationfrom American University and attended executive developmentcourses at the University of Virginia Darden Graduate School ofBusiness Administration.

Boeing Board Elects Ken DubersteinLead Director

CHICAGO — The Boeing Company board of directors haselected Kenneth M. Duberstein lead director, replacing LewPlatt who passed away earlier this year. Duberstein, 61, hasserved on the Boeing board since 1997.

Duberstein is chairman and chief executive officer of TheDuberstein Group, a Washington, D.C.-based consulting firm.

Prior to starting the firm, he served in the Reagan administra-tion, including two years as the president’s Chief of Staff, in1988 and 1989.

“Ken has in-depth knowledge of this company and has aproven ability to build consensus. His global perspective andgovernment experience will continue to benefit Boeing, and I amvery pleased that he has agreed to take on this role,” said JimMcNerney, Boeing chairman, president and CEO.

Swales Aerospace Appoints JohnKlineberg as CEO

BELTSVILLE, Md. — Swales Aerospace has announced theappointment of Dr. John M. Klineberg to serve as chief execu-tive officer. Dr. Klineberg will serve for an interim term andparticipate in the company’s search for a long-term replacement.

Dr. Klineberg, former president of Space Systems/Loral and vicepresident of Loral Space & Communications, joined thecompany’s board of directors in May 2002. A 32-year veteran ofthe aerospace and defense industry, his achievements includethe establishment of the Globalstar constellation of low- earthorbit satellites while at Loral, as well as service in a variety ofmanagement and technical positions at NASA.

During his career at NASA, he was director of the GoddardSpace Flight Center, director of the Lewis Research Center anddeputy associate administrator for Aeronautics and SpaceTechnology at NASA headquarters.

L-3 Communications AppointsSteve R. Osborne Corporate VP ofBusiness Acquisition

NEW YORK — L-3 Communications has promoted Steve R.Osborne, Ph.D. to the newly created position of corporate vicepresident of business acquisition.

In his new position, Dr. Osborne will be responsible forsupporting L-3’s organic business acquisition activities, as wellas overseeing the proposal processes of L-3’s business units.Dr. Osborne reports to Jill Wittels, Ph.D., L-3’s corporate vicepresident of business development.

With over 25 years of entrepreneurial and strategic businessdevelopment experience, Dr. Osborne is a well-known expert on

John F. Olesak

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proposal development, strategic planning and businessdevelopment. Prior to his new appointment, Dr. Osborne wasdirector of strategic business initiatives for L-3, a position heheld since 2001. Prior to his work with L-3, Dr. Osborne servedas president and senior consultant of Cornerstone Training, acompany he founded in 1991.

Prior to that he served as president of Hughes Training Sys-tems, Inc., where he established Hughes as a systems integratorfor major training system programs. Dr. Osborne has also heldmanagement positions within the training system organizationsof the McDonnell Douglas Corporation, Reflectone Inc.,American Airlines and other technology organizations.

Dr. Osborne has authored a variety of articles and researchpapers dedicated to the topics of business strategy and trainingsystems design. He is also the author of Winning GovernmentBusiness: Gaining a Competitive Advantage, published in 2002.

Dr. Osborne began his career as an assistant professor atArizona Sate University, where he received his DoctorateDegree. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Univer-sity of California, San Diego. Prior to his academic work, Dr.Osborne served in the Combat Infantry of the United StatesArmy.

Marcel Fenez Re-electedChairman of CASBAA

HONG KONG — The Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Associa-tion of Asia (CASBAA) re-elected on Dec. 12 Marcel Fenez,Asia Pacific Leader, Entertainment and Media Practice ofPricewaterhouseCoopers, for another two-year term as chairmanof the association.

James Ross, media marketing director for Bloomberg Television,

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and Ian Carroll, senior VP andGM, Turner Broadcasting SystemAsia Pacific, were elected for two-year terms to the CASBAA boardof directors.

Re-elected to the CASBAAboard were Michelle Guthrie, CEOof STAR Group, Francois Theron,COO of UBC, and AlexanderBrown, president and CEO ofCNBC Asia. Remaining on theCASBAA board of 2006 for thesecond year of two-year terms arePeter Jackson, CEO of AsiaSat,

William Pfeiffer, CEO of Celestial Pictures, and Jonathan Spink,CEO of HBO Asia.

The following were also elected to the CASBAA council ofgovernors, the association’s most senior advisory body: TedMcFarland, VP Asia Pacific of ILS, Stephen Ng, chairman,president and CEO of Hong Kong Cable Television, JamieDavis, managing director, ESPN STAR Sports, Anthony Tse,GM corporate development, TOM Group, Paul Brown-Kenyon,COO of Measat, Sue Taylor, VP and GM Asia Pacific of NDS,Steve Garton, director of Media Research at Synovate, AndrewJordan, MD of Loft Communications, Mark Patterson, CEONorth Asia of GroupM, and Yong Lum Sung, president ofStarHub.

DC Palter Appointed President ofApposite Technologies

CULVER CITY, CA — DC Palterhas been appointed president ofApposite Technologies, a start-up focusing on network testtools for the satellite, wireless,and terrestrial markets.

For the previous ten years, DCwas vice president of Sales andMarketing at Mentat Inc. Prior toMentat, he worked at HughesElectronics and Honeywell.

DC Palter has co-authored threepatents on satellite link acceleration and is the author of thetextbook, Satellites and the Internet: Challenges and Solutions.

Eagle Broadband Appoints BrianMorrow as GM for IPTV SolutionsDivision

HOUSTON — Eagle Broadband, Inc. has appointed BrianMorrow as General Manager of IPTV Solutions divisioneffective immediately.

In this newly created position, Morrow will assume overallmanagement and profit and loss responsibility for Eagle’s IPTVSolutions division which includes the company’s coreIPTVComplete and MediaPro IP set-top box product lines.

Morrow brings more than 25 years of senior-level sales,marketing, product development, operations and generalmanagement experience in the technology industry to EagleBroadband. With a diverse background that ranges fromlaunching technology startups and corporate turnarounds tostrategic management consulting, Morrow has a proven trackrecord building and growing technology companies intoindustry leaders.

Morrow joins Eagle from geographic information systemssoftware and services firm Analytical Surveys, Inc.where as president and COO, he rejuvenatedthe sales, marketing and operational performance of thecompany. Prior to joining Analytical Surveys, he served as amanagement consultant for several early-stage communicationsand technology start-up companies where he performed CEO/COO-level trouble-shooting and business strategy work,including interim roles as CEO of Peerseeker (handheld voiceand data communications) and VP of Business Developmentwith NetSapiens (Voice over IP PBX solutions).

Before his recent consulting assignments, Morrow served aspresident and COO with Endeavors Technology, a Java and.NET web services start-up company that developed Webcollaboration and application delivery enterprise software,which he grew to a leadership position until its acquisition byU.K.-based Tadpole Technology.

He holds a B.S. in Computer Science from Dalhousie Universityand an MBA in Finance from the University of Ottawa.

DC Palter

Marcel Fenez

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SM

Hassan GhoulNamed Directorof Sales, MiddleEast for AscentMedia

DUBAI, U.A.E. — HassanGhoul, an industry veteranwith extensive sales andmarketing experience in theMiddle East, has agreed tojoin Ascent Media Systems &Technology Services asdirector of Sales, Middle East.Ghoul will be based in Dubaiand will be responsible forleading Ascent Media’ssystems integration businessdevelopment in the region.

Ghoul graduated from theAmerican University in Beirutin 1975 with a BE in ElectricalEngineering. He then joinedCOMSIP Enterprises in Paris,France as Systems Engineerwithin the IT Projects Depart-ment. With 3M Middle East,he served as Technical Salesand Marketing Supervisor fortheir power and telecommuni-cation products.

Ghoul joined Sony Broadcastand Professional Europe inFebruary 1984, occupyingvarious sales and marketingpositions in the Middle Eastand Africa, advancing into theposition of General Manager,Sales, in charge of Sony’ssales and systems integrationoperation in the Middle East.

In May 2005, Ghoul foundedMediaNet Fz-LLC, which willcontinue to specialize in Consultancy Services for the broadcast, satellite, production and post-productionmarkets in the Middle East and North Africa regions. Ghoul speaks fluent Arabic, French and English.

http://www.isce.com

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NEW PRODUCTS

Apposite’s New Link EmulatorSimulates Terrestrial, Wireless,and Satellite Networks

NEW YORK —Apposite Tech-nologies, Inc. hasreleased theLinktropy™ 4500link emulator,

which provides an efficient and economical way to simulateterrestrial, wireless, internet, satellite or private network links ina lab environment, making it easy to validate applicationperformance and test and troubleshoot networks under avariety of real-world conditions.

Apposite said the Linktropy 4500 simulates bandwidth, delay,congestion, bit errors, and other important link characteristicsindependently in both directions at speeds up to 155 Mbpswhile its highly precise algorithms help guarantee accurateresults. With an intuitive and easy-to-use browser-basedinterface, users can install Linktropy and begin testing withinminutes. According to Apposite, the ability to switch betweenmultiple stored configurations makes Linktropy ideal forautomated product testing. It added, Linktropy is also perfectfor product demonstrations of networking equipment and client/server applications at customer sites and tradeshows.

“Even as the WAN becomes every more mission-critical for thetransfer of data, voice, and video between distant offices, thechoice of wired or wireless WAN technologies can have a greatimpact on performance,” said DC Palter, president and co-founder of Apposite Technologies. “We developed theLinktropy 4500 to help test, validate, and troubleshoot any typeof enterprise or military network in the lab.”

“We’ve over-engineered the product for precision and de-signed it to mimic the real behavior of WAN links so users canbe confident in the results of their testing,” said JeremyMcCooey, CEO and co-founder. “We wanted to ensure engi-neers get their testing right the first time and don’t waste timeretesting,” he added.

Linktropy 4500 prices start at $2500, including one year ofsupport and maintenance.

Integrasys Demos Two-way TerminalInstallation Tool

NOORWIJK, The Netherlands — Integrasys recently demon-strated its Satmotion Pocket low cost VSAT line-up system, incollaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA), duringthe SatLabs Group meeting at Noorwijk, The Netherlands.

Integrasys said the demonstration consisted of the completeconfiguration and alignment of a two-way broadband satelliteterminal pointing to Hispasat 30° W with only the help of acompass and a Satmotion Pocket PDA tool. The demonstrationdid not require on-site instrumentation or terrestrial communica-tion support.

SatLabs Group members followed the pointing and line-upprocedures at the terminal antenna site, where one singleinstaller achieved easily, quickly, and accurately the completesetup. Integrasys said that in only five minutes, the installercarried out indoor unit configuration, forward link acquisition,return link EIRP and cross polarization adjustment and, finally,installation validation using Satmotion Pocket on a wirelessPDA, without coordination with Hispasat Network OperationCenter staff.

Satmotion Pocket is being used by Hispasat to guide installersin pointing and aligning VSAT’s providing broadband dataservices to South and North America, Europe and Middle-Eastfrom 30° and 61° W orbital positions.

Integrasys Satmotion Pocket is a tool that allows installers toremotely display in a PDA the NOC carrier monitoring informa-tion to perform VSAT pointing and line-up. The system pro-vides to installers with a low-cost but powerful tool to performterminal indoor unit configuration, forward link acquisition, andline-up EIRP and cross polarization isolation on the returnchannel. Installers get remote real-time monitoring informationfrom the NOC via the satellite forward link, ensuring the serviceon geographical areas where no other communications but thesatellite are available.

WildBlue Enters Enterprise MarketWith Low-Cost High PerformanceBroadband Internet Services

DENVER — WildBlue Communications has announced that itis aggressively entering the Enterprise Very Small Aperture

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Terminal (VSAT) market with its high-speed Internet access viasatellite.

WidlBlue said it will begin offering enterprise class high speed,two-way wireless satellite-delivered products and services atcompelling price points to small and medium enterprises(SMEs), telecommuters and specialized industries, such asretail, financial, telemedicine, energy, remote monitoring, federal,state and local government, disaster recovery, homelandsecurity and other markets beginning the first quarter of 2006.

The company plans to establish a strong presence in the VSATEnterprise Market with low cost equipment and affordablepricing. WildBlue and its distributors will offer the service levelsand value-added services expected from Enterprise customers.

WildBlue has initially contracted with four nationwide ValueAdded Resellers (VARs) to offer WildBlue’s equipment and

monthly high speed Internet service. The VARs will handle allsales, installation and service for their individual subscribers.The four VARs that WildBlue has contracted with are:

• Ground Control, based in California, is a leadingprovider of mobile and fixed satellite Internet access andapplication solutions for business, small business, enter-prise, government and educational clients;

• OptiStreams, based in California, is a leading providerof fixed and mobile satellite services for business, enter-prise, government agencies and federal contractors;

• Broad Sky Networks, based in Oregon, offers aggre-gated broadband satellite services that allow their clients toreceive and their channel partners the ability to deliversecure, cost effective business class broadband internetconnectivity, anywhere in the United States; Amtech,

http://www.miteq.com

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NEW PRODUCTS

based in Virginia, provides nationwideservice, and is experienced in multi-sitebusinesses such as oil & gas, financial,convenience stores, and restaurants.

“WildBlue is ready to take the success of ourlow-cost, high volume consumer platform andhit the traditional VSAT market full force,” saidDave Leonard, CEO of WildBlue. “We believethat with our low price points for both equip-ment and monthly service we can grow theEnterprise VSAT Market, and we are eager tobegin working with Ground Control,OptiStreams, Broad Sky Networks and Amtechto offer WildBlue to small and medium enter-prises across the country. We hope to addother VARs in the coming months.”

Sirius Launches ChristianTalk Channel

NEW YORK — FamilyNet and Sirius SatelliteRadio launched on Dec. 12, “Christian Talk” onSirius channel 159.

The new channel airs FamilyNet’s most popularprograms, including preaching from some ofthe nation’s top pastors, innovative radio-specific programs, and leading evangelical talkpersonalities. FamilyNet is the broadcast arm ofthe Southern Baptist Convention.

FamilyNet said the new Christian Talk channelwill include such programming as ACLJ ThisWeek with Jay Sekulow, The 700 Club with PatRobertson, and daily shows At Home-Live! andYour Health, as well as some of the nation’s toppastors, including Dr. Charles Stanley, Dr. JackGraham, Dr. David Jeremiah, and Dr. BryantWright. In addition, special radio programssuch as Way of the Master, a daily, two-hourprogram featuring actor Kirk Cameron andlegendary evangelist Ray Comfort, and leadingevangelical talk personalities such as Dr.Richard Land, are also featured.

Christian Talk channel 159 is the companion toSirius’ Christian music programming, which offers three commer-cial-free channels devoted to Christian Hits (Spirit, channel 66),

http://www.aaesys.com

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NEW PRODUCTS

Christian Rock (Revolution, channel 67) and Gospel (Praise,channel 68).

Telenor, Xantic Launch BGANService

OSLO, Norway, & ROCKVILLE, Md. — With Inmarsat’slaunch on Dec. 7 of its Broadband Global Area Network(BGAN), Telenor Satellite Services, a subsidiary of Telenor ofNorway, and Xantic also announced the commercial launch oftheir BGAN service for customers in Europe, the Middle East,Asia and Africa.

BGAN is billed as the world’s first global, mobile service toprovide voice and broadband data simultaneously.

Telenor said it is the only BGAN Distribution Partner to offerTerralink, a proprietary IP networking platform and Global Pointsof Presence (PoP) Network enabling Telenor’s BGAN users totake IP networking to higher levels of performance and capabil-ity.

According to Telenor, its BGAN PoP located in Norway is anintegrated part of the Inmarsat BGAN Core Network and isconnected to the Inmarsat Satellite Access Station throughhigh-capacity leased lines. Terralink enables IP-connectivity forall BGAN services, including the robust new Streaming IPservices with guaranteed data rates up to 256 Kbps.

Terralink offers a range of service connection options, eachwith increasing levels of service quality and security. Thepremium option enables end-to-end security and guaranteedbandwidth for BGAN users through easy and cost-efficientaccess to Telenor’s worldwide customer interconnect points.

Xantic also announced it will supply a wide range of addedvalue features above and beyond the core BGAN service. It isalso offering various special promotional offers to mark thelaunch of BGAN, which can add up to as much as six months offree subscription to the service.

DirecTV Now Offers Local Channelsin Hawaii and Alaska

EL SEGUNDO, Calif — DirecTV customers in Hawaii andAlaska now have access to their local news, weather, sports andprime-time network programming - all in digital-quality pictureand sound - as the company rolls out local Honolulu broadcast

stations, including ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox, throughout theHawaiian islands and Alaska beginning Dec 8.

DirecTV said with the launch of local channels in Hawaii andAlaska and three other markets later this month, DirecTV willoffer local channels in 142 markets, representing more than 93percent of U.S. TV households.

DirecTV said customers will be able to access their nationalDirecTV programming and local channels in Hawaii by using anew DirecTV H20 receiver and a 1.2-meter dish.

The following local channels are available via DirecTV inHawaii: KHON (FOX)/Channel 2, KHET (PBS)/Channel 11, KITV(ABC)/Channel 4, KHNL (NBC)/Channel 13, KFVE (WB)/Channel 5, KIKU (IND/UPN)/Channel 20, KGMB (CBS/UPN)/Channel 9.

With the roll out local broadcast stations in Anchorage, Juneauand Fairbanks, Alaska on Thursday, DirecTV said customerswill be able to access their national DirecTV programming andlocal channels in Alaska by using a new DirecTV H20 receiverand a 1.2-meter dish. The new receiving equipment and livelocal channel feeds can be viewed at AP&T Wireless, anindependent DirecTV dealer in Juneau beginning Dec. 12.

HP to Help Starz Entertainment BringMovies to Subscribers on Cable andSatellite

PALO ALTO, Calif. — Starz Entertainment Group (SEG) said onDec. 6 it has deployed an advanced HP storage solution thatwill streamline its delivery of uncut movies to millions ofcustomers.

SEG said it will use the HP Media Storage solution to store andmanage its complete repository of movies and televisioncontent, which is delivered to cable and satellite operators andultimately to its approximately 25 million subscribers via 13channels, including Starz and Encore.

SEG, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Liberty Media Corporation,provides cable and satellite-delivered premium movies in theUnited States. Like many other media companies, SEG must beable to manage massive amounts of digital information. Forexample, a single, full-length movie in digital format can con-sume 140 gigabytes of storage. SM

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COVER STORY

Is the industry bound for stagnation orgrowth? For years rumors of satellite’sdemise have been greatly exaggerated

and most agree the industry remainssound for years to come, albeit withconservative growth. The issue is that itwill take formidable instincts to see what’saround the corner and plan accordingly.Exploring this crossroads on the futurewith some of the industry’s most informedexecutives and analysts this month wasvery revealing.

These four experts provide aperspective that is hard to beat. Read on.The road ahead may challenge yourassumptions.

The satellite industry has alwaysbeen about change. We’ve seen consumerdishes that were once three meters wideshrink to sizes smaller than a pizza. Datavolume and transmission speed require-ments have increased tremendously.“When we started Mainstream,” saysMainstream Data CEO Scott Calder, “1200bits per second was a ‘high speed feed’.Today I don’t think we even have acustomer that requires so little capacity.The principal reasons for this exponential

Satellite and IT:At the Digital Crossroadsby Howard Greenfield

increase in bandwidth utilization aretwofold: first, information applications(including video) are increasingly andmore faithfully representing reality (thinkof HD versus low-res still pictures), andsecond, the asymptotic decline in band-width cost has made it possible to buymuch more capacity.”

Today, satellites carry dozens oftransponders with multiple channels pertransponder. The challenge is in manag-ing rapidly evolving digital technolo-gies—finding efficient ways to integratewithin ever-growing global IT and DTHnetworks. Consumers world-wide demandmore channels, content, and serviceseveryday. Internet media downloads,24X7 business data, and interactivedistance learning are changing whatnetworks are all about. There is a growinghunger for bandwidth, finer customersegment granularity, and greater remote

coverage for achieving commercial andequal opportunity goals. Some rightly saythat these transmission systems are “nolonger simply a way to deliver content;they have become competitive weapons ina global information war.” Media volume,Internet protocol, and interactivity arethree change drivers.

No compromise network communica-tions are necessary for mission-criticalbusiness and consumer content delivery.Satellite has always been part of the

CONTRIBUTING EXPERTS

“Business television, remote access, credit card authorization . . .for better or worse satellite in many cases is the only option."- Christopher Baugh, President, Northern Sky Research

“We see ourselves continuing to push the envelope as it relates to . .. a vision and roadmap for their next generation of products.”- Scott E. Calder is President, CEO, and a co-founder of Main-stream Data

“Satellite companies especially in the U.S. have taken the initiativeof becoming content aggregators.”- Francois Modarresse, Vice President of Marketing and Business Development, SkyStream

“Convergence represents more and more of these companies merging– I think that continues to accelerate.”- Jimmy Schaeffler, The Carmel Group

“I can’t figure out if it’s theend or beginning.”

– Robert Hunter lyric

“Virtually every year someexpert forecasts the satelliteindustry is about to die or stag-nate and I haven’t seen anythingbut growth the last two de-cades.”

-- Francois Modarresse,SkyStream

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COVER STORY

solution adapting to new customer needs.More channels, more business applicationcomplexity, and lately the migration to IP,continue to raise the bar. A “major trendwe have seen in the last few years hasbeen the dramatic shift toward IP proto-col” says Mainstream CEO Scott Calder.“It’s tough to find things that aren’t IPthese days”. Can the industry keep upwith the these pressures to deliverincreasingly sophisticated digital applica-tions?

Digital CrossroadsMoving from analog to digital, the

Satellite industry will be forced to supportthe migration to digital data and technol-ogy. Interfacing with telecoms andbroadcast applications, handling IP oversatellite, and tackling quadruple-playdelivery of data, voice telephony, mediabroadcasting, and wireless will be key.

In November 2005 Cisco boughtbroadcast device pioneer Scientific-Atlanta for $6.9B. Though the dealleverages cable, the news is an indicatorof merging enterprise and home entertain-ment technologies. “We expect video willfollow this pattern by also merging intothe IP world” says Scientific-Atlanta CEOJim McDonald who envisions a onenetwork future. “With this convergenceof media onto one network, our customersare also looking to provide far morepersonalized or customizable servicesthan the previous monolithic offerings ofjust phone or cable TV. All of theseelements combined are creating a verydynamic, fast moving, and extremelypromising worldwide market.”

Maintaining market position isincreasingly about offering video alongwith voice and Internet service. “Echostarand DirecTV do not have a viable tele-phone solution in house and they reallydon’t yet have a viable two-way internetbroadband solution in house” points out

Jimmy Schaeffler of the Carmel Group.Part of the problem is the latency factorbetween the time someone talks and whenthe signal is received which “makes it veryawkward—not a great telephone solutionyet” says Schaeffler. “The other great

problem” he says “is that with satellitethey still can’t cost-effectively competewith a cable or internet two-way broad-band solution. To put up a satellite costsa quarter billion dollars and you need torecoup the costs. If you don’t have that

http://www.panamsat.com

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COVER STORYmany subscribers it doesn’t make it thatattractive. It’s still a very challenging roadfor the satellite providers, but what’sinteresting now is that Wall Street doesn’tlike any of them: It doesn’t like the telcos,the cable operators, and the satelliteoperators.”

Change is everywhere. It’s in therace for High Definition (HD) program-ming and bandwidth and the developmentof interactive applications and mobilecontent. Consumers express a growingsense of entitlement; they want thehighest quality and widest selection ofmovies, TV, sports on any device whetherit’s PC, TV, or hand-held. Projectedgrowth in 3G and iPod video have shownthis to be on the rise.

What Satellite Does BestThere are some things for which

Satellite remains the best provider. It hasthe unparalled ability to deliver a datasignal when terrestrial networks break orpower down. It can reach outlyingregions and provide uniform high-resolution content for training or broad-cast distribution like no other technology.For consumers, DTH offers programmingquality and variety to videophiles aroundthe world and for B2B, it supports manyindustries including Broadcast, Finance,and Training.

“It also provides instantaneousaccess around the globe that no terrestrialnetwork can give” says FrancoiseModarresse, VP Marketing at Skystream.“The brokers around the world that useinformation to guide their financialdecisions transmit financial news, stockprices, including video, and this impactsseveral million transactions per second.”Modarresse adds that “a whole newgrowth segment is data delivery oversatellite. So we have ISPs that startservices in new developing countries – itis very often much more cost-effective todeliver that over satellite than developinga terrestrial infrastructure.”

As the industry has expandedproviders like 180 Connect, Dycom, andothers provide home DTH connectivityfield support. Even more demanding,storage and distribution of data havebecome increasingly important tosatellite customers, the ability tomanage the content effectively haschallenged the industry. “With the US(and now worldwide) economy fixatedon reducing costs” says MainstreamData’s Scott Calder, “companies havediscovered that they can really save alot of money by focusing on the thingsthey do particularly well andoutsourcing other things to companiesthat specialize (and therefore havelower costs) in non-core functions. Wehave seen considerable growth in ourrevenue from companies that havedecided that they can be more costcompetitive by having us do thingsthey used to do themselves (at muchhigher cost).” Clearly, companies willcontinue to outsource, focus on theircore business, and enlist outsidesupport to optimize the bottom line.

A promising new satellite offeringis content aggregation. “Satelliteorganizations are acting as contentaggregators for more affordablecontent” says Skystream’s Modarresse.“Smaller telcos simply cannot affordhaving their own video head-end right

now and thesatellite companiesespecially in theU.S. have taken theinitiative ofbecoming contentaggregators,acquiring videocompressiontechnologies tooffer that as aservice to theircustomers to seedthe smaller marketor the myriad ofsmaller customers

with a fully turnkey media solution.”According to Modarresse there are fourU.S. operators “who have announcedservices and these include SES Americom,Broadstream, Globecast in associationwith Eagle Broadband, and Aurora”.

Quadruple ThreatWhat used to be “triple-play”—the

collective offering of voice, Internet, andvideo by one provider—is increasinglyreferred to as “quadruple-play” to includewireless services. Satellite must increas-ingly face a growing business andconsumer customer base demanding asmany of these services at the highestquality for the lowest price all in oneplace. Cisco CEO John Chambers refers tothis as the need to minimize the complexityof collapsing data, voice, and video into asingle IP-based network. And like manyexamples in the industry the only truesolution seems to be “an integratedarchitecture is the only way to reduce thiscomplexity.”

This affects the industry because“the satellite market is more integratedwith the terrestrial world now” saysChristopher Baugh, President, NorthernSky Research who refers to MainstreamData as a company that tackles this:“satellite is number one for them –because of that they’re a good example ofa company that understands IT pretty wellprobably takes different technologies and

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COVER STORY

builds the solution.”

Mainstream Data’s Calder believesthat “History is the best predictor of thefuture. We expect to see new productsand services which will continue the(unstoppable) march to the future: better,faster, cheaper. The only thing I wouldadd to that is that we see an increasingemphasis on applications—not justtransmission. It isn’t just getting the stuffto end users; it’s also making sense of thecontent once it arrives. We have a wholesuite of applications called ‘Medias’ thatruns on edge servers we deploy for manyof our customers.”

These applications may not yethandle the full suite of services to tacklequadruple play, but as Calder says “wesee ourselves continuing to push theenvelope as it relates to providing turnkeytransmission and associated applicationsand fulfillment. Technicolor and our othercustomers—which include Bloomberg,Reuters, the European PressphotoAgency, and many others—expect notjust cost savings, but increases in thequality of their products, improvement inthe service to their end users, and a visionand roadmap for their next generation ofproducts. We hope to continue to deliverall of those.”

IPTV and “Switches in theSky”

The satellite industry may not expectto see the same barn-burner growth likelyin store for wireless and interactive TVmarkets. Yet its role in data communica-tions will be key in several areas andsupport a steady though measuredincremental growth. Analysts andexecutives seem in accord satellite willplay a critical role as technology andcontent provider. One spike in the not toodistant future will be IPTV.

Northern Sky Resaerch interprets

this growth due to revenue-sharing dealssatellite providers will be able to strikewith the content providers themselves.This figure would reach $17B by 2010, aten-fold increase from 2005 and takingover 3% of the overall market according toNorthern Sky (IPTV Via Satellite report,2005).

As the days of the exclusive analogbroadcast process fade, a range of newdigital applications, networking, and datamanagement are in getting into full swing.Satellite remains in demand for its abilityto provide the fullest global coverage,continuous network up-time, and highvolume data delivery. Phizer runs exten-sive sites for sales team distance learningas does GM where dealer locations have aGilat box for training on new products,cars, and company news according toNorthern Sky’s Christopher Baugh. Thisconnection is directly to “the dealerlocation” says Baugh. “So those types ofopportunities are the sweet spot becausewhat satellite does the best is broadcast-ing. When you’re pushing contentdown and mainly one way link, and yourreturn channel is a satellite does thattremendously well because one link upand one link down is a pretty compellingvalue proposition.”

Other examples of growth the lastfew months include France Telecomsubsidiary Globecast’s newly announcedservices in the U.S., India, France, and theMiddle East as well as Skystream’sselection by China’s leading industryplayers China Telecom, China Education

Howard Greenfield has held senior management andconsulting positions with Sun Microsystems, Informix Soft-ware, British Telecom, and Apple Computer’s AdvancedTechnology Group. Mr. Greenfield is a frequent contributor toindustry publications. He did his graduate studies at Stanford University andcan be reached at [email protected].© 2005 All Rights Reserved - Howard GreenfieldFurther Information contact: [email protected]

TV, and the ministry of Water Resourcesfor satellite-based delivery.

Is there even more potential ahead inthe new Spaceway bird? “Most satellitestoday are simply reflectors, big transpon-ders that bounce the signal off the birdand back down” says Carmel Group’sJimmy Schaeffler. “But Spaceway” saysSchaeffler “has talked about a ‘bigger,better’ satellite: a ‘switch in the sky’ thatcan take a signal and direct it to a differentpoint on earth depending on where it’sbeing sent. But as Newscorp has recentlysold the company, it could be they don’thave the deep pockets any more and thenew owners decide they don’t want topursue it”.

It seems almost every week a newindustry challenge presents itself—aprocession of emerging technologies,services, and companies. As Schaefflerconcludes: “ One thing that appears to meis this overused term convergencerepresenting more and more of thesecompanies not only merging but more andmore of these technologies overlapping –I think that continues to accelerate. So, Ican see a company possibly purchasingEchostar in the next two to five years andI can see a telco cable alliance whichbecomes a better way of delivering thesignal to the consumer.” Some may sayhistory is the best predictor. But beyondthis digital crossroads is a new historythat will be written by the industry’screative direction during the remainingyears of the decade. SM

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FEATURE

Back in the spring of2002 a senior industryexecutive predicted that there

would soon be just two truly globalplayers operating satellites. The consoli-dation game was already well under waythe year before (March 2001) when SESacquired GE Americom. Since then wehave seen almost every significantsatellite player either get bought (andfrequently sold again) by private equityfunds, or as a direct result of their ownprivatisation seen the sort of mega-mergers take place, like Intelsat andPanAmSat, or the latest (Dec 2005)acquisition of New Skies Satellite by SESGlobal.

SES Global’s president RomainBausch summed up the situation recentlywhen he said: “The next step in consolida-tion will either be acquisitions of regionalsatellite operators. And there is still a lot[of scope] in Asia, or someone will acquireEutelsat.”

Before we look in detail at Eutelsat’snow lonely position, let’s look at the nutsand bolts of the SES/NSS deal. SES andNSS were near-ready to sign the deal onFriday Dec 9, and again early on Dec 13,but a few last minute legals slowed theprocess down. Insiders suggest that whilethese last-minute discussions were onlyover minute contract details the argu-ments between the lawyers reached feverpitch at times. At day’s end SES agreed topay Blackstone Group (who held 55%control of NSS) and its shareholders anattractive $22.52 per share in cash, worth$760m, plus absorbing about $400m ofdebt (which SES will refinance), and thusan all-up price of about $1.16bn. For the

SES expands its orbit againBy Chris Forrester

year to Sept 30 New Skies generatedrevenues of £232.9m. Dan Goldberg, onbehalf of NSS, was rightly justified insaying that he’d achieved a very healthypremium for his shareholders, equal to36% over its own IPO listing just 7 monthsago. Blackstone itself, once the dealcloses, will pick up a cool $400m in profit.

The deal brings to an end what NSSCEO Dan Goldberg described as histalking to “every conceivable would-beacquirer” over the past year or two.Indeed, other than hang a placard aroundhis neck saying ‘buy me’, Goldberg hasbeen consistent in stressing to anylistener that his business was for sale –but only at the right price. One of thereasons for settling on SES was the fearthat New Skies might be left out of thiscurrent wave of consolidation – and leftsitting on the shelf. It also seems that SES

is relaxed – or has already factored in –any potential problems with NSS craft.

The analysts will number-crunch and– perhaps grumble – over earningsmultiples, enterprise value, return oninvestment and generally whether SESover-paid for these assets, but in therealtor’s jargon New Skies is all aboutlocation, location, location. The satellitesare in place and earning income. The fleetis by and large youthful, and occupyingincreasingly valuable orbital slots – andone suspects SES thinks it can enthusias-tically exploit the new assets now underits belt. Moreover, this expansion-by-acquisition means that SES does not haveto invest in risky green field activities. Thespadework has already been done. Thedeal is expected to close in about 6months, and is unlikely to hit any majorregulatory obstacles.

Eutelsat CEO Giuliano Berretta SES Global CEO Romain Bausch

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FEATURES

Winning control over New Skies,besides giving the usual revenue benefits,provides SES with a truly global role,especially in terms of two highly comple-mentary Indian Ocean craft NSS-6 andNSS-8 as well as boosting SES gaps incoverage over the Atlantic and Pacificoceans. (NNS-8 launches next year).Romain Bausch, in an analysts briefing onDec 14, stressed that even though theNew Skies craft were generally locatedabove the world’s oceans their beamfocus was very much on the nearbylandmasses. He also stressed thecomplementarities in terms of C-band andKu-band in terms of regional and marketcoverage. The addition of such a highratio of data traffic will alter SES Global’soverall bias towards video traffic (cur-rently about 80% of its total traffic)downwards, to about 75%. However, SESwelcomed the additional DTH traffic NewSkies will bring in particular from India andthe Mid-East, described as major existinggaps in SES Global’s coverage.

Mix in SES’ other recent investments,like Canada’s Ciel, Mexico’s QuetzSat andthe global jigsaw begins to look complete.Additionally the combined fleet givesadditional security in terms of back up,and flexibility in terms of pricing. AsiaSat’sCEO Peter Jackson was said to be “veryexcited” at the prospect of working withNSS. No satellites would be moved orrelocated, said Bausch. Dan Goldbergstays on and will join the SES Globalboard. There will be some other tangiblesynergies in terms of satellite procurementand technical operations. SES shares roseimmediately 3.2% to •14.39, their highestfor more than four years.

Which is, sadly, not the case atEutelsat, which now looks increasinglybeleaguered. Had Eutelsat itself boughtNew Skies then it could have justifiablyclaimed a global role. Eutelsat already

owns a large slice of Hispasat that gives itaccess to a valuable satellite over theAmerica (Amazonas), and Eutelsat on itseasterly arcs easily reaches Asia. But theParis-based operator has had more than afew challenging weeks since our reportlast month.

It scrubbed, then hastily reinstatedits IPO, and at a Euro12 price/share($14.40), a huge discount from its initialprospectus target range of $18.30-$21.31 –and its price fell further after the IPO, onlya few Cents but a clear indication ofmarket sentiment. Nevertheless, Eutelsatwas able to raise around $1bn to clear afew debts and prepare for an intensive –and expensive - period of satellite buildingand buying. It is difficult now to predict apossible end game for Eutelsat. NoEuropean regulator would easily permitSES Global to buy Eutelsat, even if therewere willing sellers. A mergedIntelsat+PanAmSat, as a buyer, would notraise such regulatory hackles, but onesuspects that Intelsat is likely to haveenough on its plate for at least the next 12-24 months simply digesting the currentmeal.

Seemingly Eutelsat has absolutelyno intention of standing by waiting to be

someone or others next meal. CEOGiuliano Berretta revealed that besides itstwo imminent heavyweight additions to itsimpressive Hot Bird fleet (HB7 and HB8,launching Q1 and Q2 2006 respectively), ithas comprehensive plans to boost its in-orbit assets. Eutelsat is working on threeother craft W7, W2A and W2M, alldesigned to either replace existing craft oradd to orbital capacity. Berretta wasparticularly enthusiastic about 36 degEast, a position that initially was focussedon Russia and the former Soviet bloc ofcountries. “We have two Eutelsat craft,W4 and Sesat 1 serving eastern Europeand Africa. W4 is a TV satellite withperfect characteristics for the Russian andex-CIS market, meaning that it matchesRussia’s own broadcasting model, whichis circular polarity within DBS frequencies(11.7-12.5). We are the only operatorcarrying a Russian pay-TV platform, withNTV+. W4 is growing in importance ineastern Europe. We very recently con-cluded a contract with PoverkhnostSatellite Communications which lastmonth launched the first DTH pay-TVplatform in the Ukraine, and [in December]added HDTV channels in MPEG4. Wethink that this region has enormouspotential for satellite broadcasting andbroadband services.”

Eutelsat’s current trio of Hot Spots

Position Capacity Target market

13 degrees East 5 ‘Hot Birds’ Greater Europe8 deg West* Atlantic Bird 2 AOR

Telecom 2D36 deg East Sesat 1 Former CIS/ W4 sub-Saharan Africa

W7 when launched “Notes:8 deg West is 1 deg from NileSat’s 7 deg W position, whereEutelsat will also be co-locating a craft shortly to tap into theMiddle East market

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FEATURES

Then there’s Eutelsat’s growingrevenue from its African DTH market,beamed from 36 deg E. “We use both W4and Sesat 1 to cover sub-Saharan Africa.In this region our anchor-broadcastingclient is MultiChoice’s pay-TV platformwhich last year increased its capacity to 7transponders spread over W4 and Sesat 1.The expansion for MultiChoice was madepossible by reorienting Sesat 1’sspotbeam from the Indian sub-continent[to focus] over Nigeria and surroundingcountries.” Eutelsat’s clients on its Asiaspotbeam were transferred to Sesat 2 (at53 deg E, where the craft is also known asExpress AM22).

These new markets are vital toEutelsat’s longer-term plans, especiallynow that following a planned mergerbetween Canal Plus and Television ParSatellite (TPS), the two French pay-TVbroadcasters, it is likely down the line thatEutelsat will lose its lucrative French DTHcontracts.

Berretta outlined Eutelsat’s plans forW2M, now in the advanced planningstage. “W2M will be a 29 transpondersatellite, that could substitute for W1,restoring the full capacity of the original

W1. We are givingthis procurementhigh priority, notso much becauseof W1’s end of lifelimitations but inorder to bringcapacity at 10degrees East backto original levels.What we arelooking for isessentially asatellite that hasthe same cost pertransponder as canbe achieved by alarge platform.”

Also well advanced is W7, whichBerretta explained is part of his strategy toexpand capacity on offer, especially overAfrica where demand is high. In essenceEutelsat will double capacity on offer willW7 which is likely to have 58 transpon-ders on board, of which 50 could be usedat any one time. “W7’s mission will be toreplace Sesat 1 well ahead of its expectedend of life which is in the 2010-2011timeframe. We are keen to push aheadwith the procurement of this satellitebecause demand for capacity for broad-cast and broadband services is very highat 36 degrees East, which has become akey location for Africa. Our objective is forW7 to substitute Sesat 1 well before thelatter’s end of life. This will allow us tomove Sesat 1 elsewhere. Our strategy is tocontinue to build up 36 degrees East, withW4 and W7, to more than double capacityinto sub-Saharan Africa and providecapacity over Europe as far east as whatwe all call the ‘Stans’. W7 will be slightlybigger than W3A. It will carry frequenciesable to function in DBS, FSS and Ka-bandfeeder links.”

Berretta used our conversation tosay he was enthusiastically looking to a

reduction in launch costs, with newsuppliers also providing greater flexibilityto satellite operators who are currentlysubject to delays and the consequentcommercial implications. “Satellitesoriginally represented such a high costbecause of the cost of launch services.We are now seeing strong price pressureon launchers with new competitively-priced proposals, mainly from Russia andthe Ukraine, ahead of developments inIndia and China. Other commercialdevelopments are coming from Boeing’sSeaLaunch, and LandLaunch fromBaikonur, both based on the Ukraine’sZenith rocket. If this trend continues itcould completely alter the establishedequation for satellite building, enablingoperators to launch satellites with somemodularity and more economically.”

“Established players such asArianespace have a challenging taskalthough they are well equipped to staycompetitive through their innovativetechnology and ability to launch twosatellites. While the Proton boostercontinues to evolve, we see less and lessof Lockheed Martin’s Atlas while Boeing’sDelta has disappeared from the commer-cial scene with all of its production goingto military needs. Some innovation isemerging from outside the Western Worldin the same way as in computer and TVtechnology where China is emerging as amajor force.”

And satellite builders, for some timethe subject of criticism for buildingsatellites with high-degrees of complexityand not commensurate degrees ofreliability, are also being innovative, saysBerretta. “A similar evolution [is taking]place in satellite manufacturing, perhapsat first at a lower level with smallersatellites. Europe and the US are movingtowards higher-level, larger platformswhich give a lower average cost pertransponder [to build and launch]. This

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FEATURES

SM

London-based Chris Forrester, a well-knownbroadcasting journalist is the Editor for Europe, MiddleEast and Africa for SATMAGAZINE. He reports on allaspects of the industry with special emphasis on content,the business of television and emerging technologies. Hehas a unique knowledge of the Middle East broadcasting scene, havinginterviewed at length the operational heads of each of the main channels andpay-TV platforms. He can be reached at [email protected]

opens the market to builders of smallersatellites who can move in to take theplace left by platforms such as Boeing’s376 [‘Spinner’] which is no longer inproduction. If you look around there is alack of smaller platforms. Orbital Scienceis one player from the US, as are playersfrom India and Russia.”

While Berretta remains sceptical ofDARS (satellite radio) over Europe,suggesting that Europe’s FM and digitalterrestrial radio services more thanadequately serve their local markets, he isenthusiastic about mobile TV. “We wouldbe willing to consider an S-Band payloadto support mobile TV. We have no plansourselves to develop a 9m on-boardantenna for experimental needs but we

would consider carrying a piggybackpayload for ESA or a national spaceagency that could be commercialised afteran initial phase of experimentation. Look athow TV to mobile is being achieved via S-Band over satellite with terrestrialgapfillers. However, in my view the

window for S-Band is quite narrow. Eitherit will have happened by the end of thisdecade or it will not happen because it willbe overtaken by other technologies.”

http://www.ilc.com/satellite.html

http://www.ilc.com/landingpages/satmag052505.html

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In a market wheresatellite bandwidth hasbecome a commodity,

how can operatorsachieve product differen-tiation, add value andenhance their offerings?As industry watchers areaware, the search forcompetitive advantage inthis market is endemic.Ever since the emergenceof satellite over- capacity,operators have beenstruggling to develop newways to enhance thevalue of their satelliteservices and haveachieved only limitedsuccess. This scenario isabout to change.

A New ValueAdded

Advancements insatellite network management software arenow offering network operators theopportunity to provide significantlyimproved services to their customers.Vendors of satellite services will soonrecognize that advancements in softwaretechnology are much more than aconvenience and efficiency enhancementfor the network management staff. Theycan be deployed as a powerful sales toolthat can differentiate generic services,allow for higher margins and reducechurn.

To date, satellite network manage-

Is Automated Satellite NetworkManagement a New CompetitiveAdvantage?By Alan Gottlieb

ment has been a rather home-brewed affairwith operators relying on varying combi-nations of HP Openview, offerings fromILC (MaxView) and High Street Networks(Xpress). The offerings from ILC and HighStreet Networks represent a significantstep in the evolution of satellite networkmanagement software.

Essentially, these products focus onmanagement of individual networkelements. In particular, ILC’s Maxview andHigh Street Networks Xpress products areespecially adept at interfacing with legacy

network devices not compatible withSNMP or monitoring environmentalconditions. While these software pack-ages have been the products of choice,they tend to lack the ability to overviewvery large networks in a convenient wayand concentrate on technical rather thanthe business aspects of network opera-tions. Essentially, they do little to auto-mate the satellite network managementprocess and improve the operator cus-tomer relationship.

Recently, however, a promising new

FEATURE

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software product was introduced into themarket by Parallel. Known as SatManage,it utilizes and integrates with existingapplications such as Openview andelement focused solutions from ILC andHigh Street and provides an automated,manager of managers, network manage-ment center that consolidates monitoring,analysis, trouble ticketing and resolutionand predictive features into a streamlinedand simple solution. This is a solution thatimproves the service offering and comple-ments the operator customer relationship.To understand the value of this approachand the problems solved, consider theexperience of Hughes Network Systems inEurope.

Improving BusinessOperations

For HNSE, the existing vendorsmonitor and control system was unable tomanage both the network traffic and RFperformance. In addition, it was takingmonths to prepare and approve SLA

reports thereby delaying payments.Trouble ticketing was limited and timeconsuming —— all contributing to a lessthan ideal customer experience. Finally,managing a large and complex hybridnetwork was increasing demand for skillednetwork management staff.

FEATURES

Working with HNSE, Paralleldeveloped a series of value-addedsoftware solutions that evolved into anautomated network management productknown as SatManage.

With the installation of SatManage,HNSE was no longer faced with the

http://www.lnr.com

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FEATURES

SM

challenge of monitoring the network fromtwo separate systems and is now able tohandle all network management functionsfrom one centralized, easy to interpretweb-based GUI. In addition, the resolutionof trouble tickets no longer presented aproblem to HNSE.

In the past trouble ticketing wasarduous and time consuming. WithSatManage 70% of trouble tickets areresolved automatically and nearly 100% offaults were logged. In addition, becausemost common problems are handled in anautomated mode, network managers havemore time to investigate and resolve moreserious problems. With the installation,HNSE can now manage a network threetimes the size with no increase in staff.The manager’s “window” on the networkwas reduced to a single GUI managing aningenious data interpretation system.

This data interpretation system orNetwork Correlator reviews all of the

Alan Gottlieb is CEO and Principal Consultantat Gottlieb and Company, Inc. He can be reachedat [email protected]

millions of lines of data collected by theNMS, decides which are important, allowscorrelation between related performanceindicators such as signal quality andnetwork latency and summarizes them ona single web page. It allows visualidentification of time related problems,highlights trends that could evolve intofuture problems and reduces calls to thehelpdesk. These capabilities form thebasis for Predictive Network Manage-ment.

Only a small percentage of NMSsglobally are predictive, which involvesmonitoring trends, analyzing data and

examining anypatterns that may beemerging andcausing potentialproblems. Thiscapability is invalu-able in improving theperformance of thenetwork and demon-strating to thecustomer the abilityto minimize networkunderperformanceand outages. Otherfeatures ofSatManage furthercomplement theoperator/customerrelationship.

BetteringCustomerRelationships

Consider thefact that using SatManage, Operators cannow allow their customers to log onthrough the web and obtain a quickoverview of their network status, followtrouble ticketing, spot problems andmonitor their resolution. Finally, networkmanagers now have the ability to produceSLA focused reports on the fly assuringtheir ability to demonstrate their level ofcompliance with SLAs thereby shorteningthe billing cycle and improving collec-tions.

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CASE STUDY

The Challenge:RTVi is a pioneer international

broadcaster that delivers ethnic multi-channel programming worldwide viasatellite. RTVi broadcasts 24 hours a dayfrom their headquarters in New York Cityand maintains broadcast and studiofacilities in Frankfurt, Moscow and TelAviv. On an international scale, satellitesare used to deliver targeted content towidely scattered viewers. Satellite time canbe cost-effective for point-to-multipointdistribution, but costs can quickly exceedrevenues when also used extensively forbackhaul feeds on a point-to-point basis.

Movies, documentaries and games,as well as talk shows and children’s

RTVi Expands Revenue Opportunitiesand Reduces ExpensesUsing the Public InternetBy Dan McCrary

RTVi, a Russian language television network, serves over 50 millionviewers worldwide through its broadcasts. RTVi uses the public Internetfor private transmissions among facilities, and reaches its audiencethrough satellite distribution. The deployment of Path 1 IP video gate-ways enables a 90% cost savings over satellite usage. Furthermore,RTVi can move additional high-quality content through its facilities andgrow its subscription base.

Business Results:• New Revenue Opportunities• Reduced Costs• Simplified Management• Increased Flexibility• Increased Throughput

Solution Components:• Path 1 Cx1000 IP video gateways at each network interface (New

York, Frankfurt, Moscow and Tel Aviv)

programming, must all be moved aroundthe network in preparation for broadcast.In addition to the primary program stream,a myriad of news items, especiallyinterviews, benefit from real-time capabil-ity. Conducting interviews with extendedlatencies between the parties is difficulton those involved and reduces the qualityof the interview.

To expand its subscription base andreduce its costs, RTVi needed a more cost-effective means to transport broadcast-quality video among its facilities. Onepossibility was to use the public Internetfor real-time transmission of live and tapedfeeds. Existing store-and-forward technol-ogy had its advantages, but also had

shortcomings due to latency and through-put concerns. A real-time solution thatutilized the public Internet would allowincreased throughput, reduced costs andincreased flexibility for programming,while still allowing the use of satellites if,and when needed.

The Solution:The ideal solution arrived in the form

of Path 1’s Cx1000 IP video gateway,which offers forward error correction(FEC), is easy to setup, and provideshigh-quality video over both impaired andunimpaired networks. While some USterrestrial networks may provide very highquality of service (QoS), that is not alwaysthe case in the rest of the world. A circuitfrom New York to Moscow was monitoredand more than 1,000 packets/hour werelost. More than 10,000 packets/hourarrived out of order, and the jitter wasfound to be greater than 25ms. Despitethese numbers, Path 1’s IP video gatewaywas able to reliably and securely transportvideo without significant latency and

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CASE STUDY

without any video impairment. Accordingto Julius Feinstein, RTVi’s VP of BroadcastOperations and Engineering, “We moni-tored the first 96-hour period and saw noglitches. There have been no outages.There’s no special provisioning, it justworks.”

Path 1’s technology is designed toeffectively handle the problems found inIP networks, not just those that arepristine, but also circuits that are far fromperfect. Using sophisticated algorithms,the Cx1000 can operate on a variety ofdata circuits without compromising thequality and integrity of the transportedvideo. Problems such as network jitter,packet loss, duplicate, and out-of-orderpackets are all handled seamlessly withinthe Path 1 equipment.

Business Benefits:Reduced latency and increased

flexibility are two primary benefits thatprovide daily returns. The reduced latencyprovides increased throughput over thevarious circuits involved. With this addedthroughput, additional attention can bepaid to the available bandwidth. Like anyasset, RTVi manages their networkbandwidth for maximum return. Whilestore-and-forward operations as well asdata exchanges continue over the networkin the background, high-priority “live”feeds can now be arranged quickly asneeded.

As those in broadcast are well aware,last minute changes and emergenciescome with the territory. The increasedflexibility afforded by Path 1’s IP videogateway has made these situations easierto deal with. One such emergencyoccurred recently, when the Europeanportion of the Internet failed, isolating theFrankfurt facility. Within ten minutes,arrangements were made to re-route theFrankfurt traffic through Tel Aviv. Withthe Path 1’s technology, a simple

reconfiguration allowed RTVi to quicklyreturn to normal operations while repairswere accomplished in Europe.

Beyond daily operations, using thepublic Internet to transport video, dataand other communications allows broad-casters additional means to cost-effec-tively reach new and distant audiences.Despite the constant fragmentation ofmainstream audiences, the internationalreach of satellite and network technolo-gies offers an opportunity for nichebroadcasters to aggregate an audiencelarge enough to attract the attention ofadvertisers. By applying complementarytechnologies in innovative ways thatmaximize the return, pioneers such as RTVihave found new ways to apply traditionalbusiness models.

Financial Benefits:The most obvious financial impact is

the cost reduction afforded by the switchfrom satellite time to IP bandwidth.Sufficient bandwidth can be available ataround 10% of the cost of satellite time.While additional hardware is needed, it iscomparable in price with the hardware

required for satellite usage.

Additional benefits come in theincreased ability to simply and quicklydeal with last-minute changes. The factthat a hastily-scheduled last-minuteinterview can be included in a newscastincreases RTVi’s credibilty within theworldwide Russian community, and thustheir appeal to advertisers seeking thatmarket. That in turn, pays off in the formof increased advertising dollars. Reinvest-ing the cost savings in improved program-ming and distribution grows RTVi’saudience, as well as its appeal to advertis-ers.

Technology Benefits:Beyond the ability to move high-

quality video over the public Internet inreal-time, the change away from circuit-switched systems toward a packet-switched network represents a fundamen-tal change in facility infrastructure. Dataalready seems to traverse public andprivate networks in mysterious ways.Managing to transport the sights andsounds of video in real-time over the samenetwork can be almost magical. Improving

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CASE STUDY

DanMcCraryhas over 14years ofexperiencein sales,marketing, product man-agement and businessdevelopment with a focus inIP networking, videocommunications and digitalmedia. As Vice President ofMarketing of Path 1,McCrary leads all market-ing, product managementand vertical market devel-opment programs at Path 1.Previously McCrary servedas the head of Sales andBusiness Development forGlowpoint,. BeforeGlowpoint, McCrary servedas Vice President ofMarketing for Envivio, aleading provider of MPEG-4solutions. Over his career,McCrary has also heldexecutive and senior levelpositions at video network-ing companies includingCacheflow, I-Beam Broad-casting, Picturetel, andSprint Communications.

connectivity, reliability andthroughput of all content in asingle ubiquitous networkenables the creation of apowerful business asset thatwill provide returns now andin the future. SM

http://www.anacominc.com

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VIEWPOINT

The connection between satellitecommunications and InformationTechnology (IT) was established

some 20 years ago when the Very SmallAperture Terminal (VSAT) first appeared,but the debate as to its validity still rages.That major corporations like Wal-Mart andChevron as well as several US govern-ment agencies including the US PostalService and FEMA would adopt VSATnetworks for data is clear proof. However,obstacles remain to satellites being a morecommon tool for overcoming the limita-tions of terrestrial services like T1s, FrameRelay and DSL. It is perhaps a contradic-tion that even in corporations that rely onprivate satellite TV for training andemployee communications, the IT connec-tion for data is lacking. I believe thatgreater confidence results when usersunderstand that (1) satellite data commu-nications is practical and affordable, and(2) the adoption of this approach isachievable with a reasonable amount ofeffort.

Satellites and DataSatellite communication of data is

merely a part of the overall telecommuni-cations picture and thus has a naturalconnection to IT. This is because informa-tion resources that comprise IT are reallyembedded within a network, and thatnetwork employs telecommunications.Organizations with lots of employees at asingle location, as well as at other loca-tions, rely on Local Area Network (LAN)and Wide Area Network (WAN) facilitiesthat they construct within and betweenbuildings and that are obtained fromservice providers, notably telephonecompanies. All of this is expensive anddemands attention to detail since every IT

Satellites and IT – Myths and Realitiesby Bruce ElbertPresident, Application Technology Strategy, Inc.

application is dependent on the availabil-ity and performance of these resources.

The good news is that the aforemen-tioned front-line users of VSATs havedemanded the same capabilities andservice guarantees from leaders in thesatellite industry as they do from other ITand telecommunications providers. Ourindustry is therefore prepared to respondto IT requirements for extended broad-band connectivity. The Army discoveredthis – their “Network Centric” style ofbattle relies on commercial satellite linksand ground equipment.

Why don’t most IT managers“think” in terms of satellites when anappropriate requirement comes up? Ibelieve this is because satellites areappropriate in certain special cases, andthese cases are exceptions to whatnormally arises for most enterprises or

even individuals. Examples of theseexceptions include:

1. High-speed access from remoteplaces not adequately served

2. Extending service over a wideregion such as a large country,continent or ocean

3. A necessity to deliver identicaltechnical characteristics in areaswith incompatible services

4. Extending across borders toachieve a trans-national network

5. Multicast of digital content on apoint-to-multipoint basis

6. Distributing high-quality real-time video and audio

The key point is that when one suchdemand arises, an adept IT manager ornetwork engineer will include potentialsatellite data solutions among the alterna-tives considered for extending the overall

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network. Experience shows that managerswho do this will get results when andwhere they need them.

Dispelling MythsSeveral of these exceptions involve

service to remote or extensive areas whereterrestrial networks either don’t exist orare very difficult to employ on a seamlessbasis. Thanks to the success of DBS andSatellite Radio, most IT managers andnetwork engineers are well aware of whata satellite can physically do. However,that little piece of knowledge can be adangerous thing because of a variety ofmyths that seem to prevail. Here is mysummary of these doubt-creators:

Myth 1 - Satellite technology is forspace cadets who were raised at a launchsite. While it is true that some satelliteknowledge is helpful, a depth of under-standing of these systems is not required.

Myth 2 - Satellites are unreliableand fall from the sky. In fact, end-to-endreliability is better than cable and tele-phone for the end user. Parenthetically,GEO satellites cannot re-enter the atmo-sphere due to their altitude; old ones thatreach end-of-life are simply raised to ahigher altitude and turned off.

Myth 3 - It’s a big investment. Thiswill not be the case if you work with aservice provider who invested the capitaland provides the hands-on expertise.

Myth 4 - Latency will kill theapplication. Latency only affects someapplications and can usually be addressedwith a combination of satellite network“tuning” and possibly applicationmodification.

Myth 5 - Satellite broadcasts areinsecure because anyone can listen tothem. Information security of satellitetransmissions is achieved with the same

VIEWPOINT

technology that addresses thisissue with regard to the openInternet.

Some of these myths arebased in technical issues thatrequire careful attention. Forexample, Myth 4 regardinglatency is an inherent concernbecause of the propagationdelay of one quarter secondbetween ground sender andground receiver. This, ofcourse, adds to the delaycaused by other IT resources,particularly client/serverprocessing and IP switchingand routing. Data applicationusers generally do not noticeresponse times less than twoseconds, so propagation delayis certainly manageable.However, if the computers,servers and digital processingelements add substantial delay,the service quality may suffer.

This issue can be over-come by identifying the time-sensitive application andconfiguring it appropriately. Inone such difficult but solublecase, an inventory management application was designed to run on a PDA via a wireless LAN.The designer, assuming veryshort transmission delay, codedthe application so that the datawas sent piece by piece,requiring confirmation at everystep. When a long distanceconnection over a satellite hopwas inserted between the PDAand the server, the applicationslowed down to a crawl. Thesolution was to modify theapplication to forward its datain blocks rather than shortqueries. Once the user hits the

http://www.globecast.com

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VIEWPOINT

Bruce Elbert has over 30 years of experience in satellite com-munications and is the President of Application TechnologyStrategy, Inc., which assists satellite operators, network provid-ers and users in the public and private sectors. He is an authorand educator in these fields, having produced seven titles and conductedtechnical and business training around the world. During 25 years with HughesElectronics, he directed major technical projects and led business activities inthe U.S. and overseas. He is the author of The Satellite Communication Applica-tions Handbook, second edition (Artech House, 2004). Web site:www.applicationstrategy.com / Email: [email protected]

return key, the accelerated applicationconnects to a local VSAT and directlyuploads the entire block over the satellite.Due to a high-degree of error correction,there is minimal retransmission delaybecause block delivery is so reliable.

A requirement for secure datadelivery (Myth 5) can be addressed withconfidence thanks to encryption andauthentication technology. The SecureSockets Layer (SSL) protocol used toassure privacy of on-line transactions isvery effective for securing end-to-endsatellite data transfers. Also, the popularDigital Encryption Standard (DES) can beused to secure all data that is transmittedto the satellite and thus relayed to allpoints within the footprint. Even strongerencryption technologies are available.One very popular IT networking approachon terrestrial networks is the VirtualPrivate Network (VPN) using a standardcalled IPsec. This approach, like DES,secures all information that leaves thepoint of origination (typically a firewall)until it is deciphered at the distant server.Putting a VPN over a satellite is poten-

tially effective, but requires the same kindof care as I discussed with regard toapplication acceleration.

How to Proceed?Say that you’re convinced that there

is a role for a satellite-IT connection; howmuch, then, do you need to understandabout getting such a network intoexistence? My recommendation is thatyou first understand your telecommunica-tions requirements, and then determinewhat expertise you and your organizationrequire with regard to alternative satellite

solutions. Then, be sure to allocate thetime and money to do it right.

Here is a suggested check list ofsuccess factors:

1. Understand what you’re trying todo – basic requirements and desiredoutcomes

2. Survey what’s out there – attendconferences and visit vendors

3. Get internal buy-in – find allies whowould benefit as well

4. Run demos and pilots – see howthis works in your real-worldsituation

5. Choose the right supplier partner(s)6. Stick to your idea and plan – don’t

get sidetracked7. Get your technical people into

satellite training – dispel the myths

I’ve covered what I believe areprimary inhibitors and enhancers for thoseneeding to connect IT to satellites for thefirst time. This is basic IT planning anddesign, not rocket science. Take this listand adapt it to your needs. Bounce ideasoff others and get comfortable with thethinking and players in the industry. Itwould be very effective to meet with otherusers who have gone before you to learnhow best to establish your connectionbetween satellites and IT. SM

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VITAL STATISTICS

Futron is a premier provider of decision support consulting services to the aerospace and telecommunications industries.Using our proprietary methodologies, models, and in-depth data repositories, Futron transforms raw data into valuableintelligence. Our results help clients make higher quality business and technical decisions. Our consulting servicesinclude market and industry analyses, safety and risk management, and communications and information management.

For more information contactSpace & Telecommunications Division, Futron Corporation – www.futron.com, Tel: +1- 347-3450 – [email protected]

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EXECUTIVE SPOTLIGHT

Reflecting on the satellite industry aswhole in 2005, how was it compared to2004? Did you see any marked improve-ment?

Improvement was noted in 2005 over

2004 in the growth of high definition Ku-band, Military C-band, Ku-band and IPTVprojects and planning internationally.

GSM back-haul circuits showed adramatic increase in transponderuse throughout the industry.

What impact would the Intelsat-

PanAmSat merger have on the industry? Candidly, I believe this merger (if

approved?) will have a potentially negativeimpact. All satellite related projects requirecompetitive transponder pricing. Approxi-mately 80% of the direct recurring costin most projects is attributed to thetransponder cost in the early years. Lackof opposition will obviously reducecompetition and therein reduce the abilityto fulfill acceptable internal rate of returnfinancial models. If approved, thismerger appears to unfortunately enrich afew and adversely affect an entire industryworldwide.

How did your company do in 2005? ATCi experienced growth in both

hardware and services in the videoentertainment segment. We were relativelyflat in our voice and data markets.

Executive Spotlight withATCi CEO Gary Hatch

How do you see 2006? What new

opportunities and challenges will theindustry in the general and your com-pany in particular be facing?

We are

optimistic in ourvideo entertain-ment sector inboth theproduct andteleportservicesbusiness. Wesee satellite as adriving forceand an enablerin the emergingTelco TV and/orIPTV market-place.

Constantchange hasalways andwill always beboth a chal-lenge as well asan opportunityin thisindustry. ParticularlyIP, M-PEG-4 andDVB-S2 willhelp the satelliteindustry bringforth moreefficient videobandwidth toDTH, CATV,

and the new Telco TV markets, however,these changes will come about over timeand are primarily contingent upon lowcost customer premise equipment andrelated regulation. SM

Satnews Managing Editor Virgil Labrador spoke with ATCi CEO Gary Hatch onhis views on how 2005 went and prospects for 2006. Excerpts of the interview:

http://www.colem.co.uk

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MARKET INTELLIGENCE

The Second Phase of the WorldSummit on the Information Society(WSIS) has come and gone, and a

new agenda has been set-out for theworld’s Information and CommunicationTechnology (ICT) “stakeholders” – policymakers, regulators, product and serviceproviders, end-users, and many others –to continue to expend all necessaryenergies and re-focus on the imperativesof bridging that now oh-so-familiar digitaldivide.

Most recent GVF program input intothe November 2005 Tunis proceedingsincluded:

•̀ The Contribution of SatelliteCommunications to the InformationSociety workshop, which wasdesigned to advance the private/public sector dialogue on spanningthe digital divide through broadbandsatellite solutions; and,

• An edited and reworked version ofthe GVF-researched/IDRC-fundedreport Open & Closed Skies:Satellite Access in Africa (originallypublished in September 2004) withinthe United Nations ICT Task ForceWorking Group on the EnablingEnvironment publication OpenAccess for Africa: Challenges,Recommendations & Examples.

The GVF contribution to the latterfocused on the specifics of policy reformand regulatory issues in bridging theAfrican digital divide through satellite

Beyond WSIS – Plurality inthe Digital DivideExploring the ICT imperatives of developed economiesBy Martin JarroldChief of International Program Development, GVF

technologies, whereas ‘The Tunis Agendafor the Information Society’ (DocumentReference: WSIS-05/TUNIS/DOC/6 (Rev.1)-E) more broadly noted that “advancesin communication technology, and high-speed data networks are continuouslyincreasing the possibilities for developingcountries, and countries with economiesin transition, to participate in the globalmarket for ICT-enabled services on thebasis of their comparative advantage.These emerging opportunities provide apowerful commercial basis for ICTinfrastructural investment in thesecountries.”

It went on to note that, “Therefore,governments should take action, in theframework of national developmentpolicies, in order to support an enablingand competitive environment for thenecessary investment in ICT infrastruc-ture and for the development of newservices. At the same time, countriesshould pursue policies and measures thatwould not discourage, impede or preventthe continued participation of thesecountries in the global market for ICT-enabled services.”

This post-Tunis position – sharingsome common ground with GVF – isillustrative of an emergent global consen-sus that has been developing over theperiod of the transition from the firstphase of WSIS to the second, a consen-sus that the countries of Europe – in theform of the European Union – has helped,and is helping, to forge, as a result of

reflection upon its experiences with itsown policies to encourage informationtechnologies in all parts of the networkedeconomy.

Indeed, the EU is itself at an impor-tant juncture with regard to InformationSociety policies. The European Commis-sion (EC) has recently launched a keyinitiative to boost the Lisbon agenda* andto promote higher growth, more jobs andgreater inclusion. Policies on ICTs,content and Research and Development(R&D) play an important role in thiscontext. The forthcoming i2010# initiativeaims to boost the economic potential ofICTs for generating growth in Europe. Inaddition, the Commission has just tabledtwo major proposals to strengthenEurope’s position in ICTs: the seventhR&D Framework Programme (FP7) and theCompetitiveness and InnovationProgramme (CIP). Furthermore, the EU hasreviewed its contributions to the Millen-nium Development Goals (MDGs) process.

On 25 November 2006 the EUInformation Society & Media Directorate-General issued a ‘Call for Input on theforthcoming review of the EU regulatoryframework for electronic communica-tions and services’, the objective of whichis to contribute to a process of review ofthe five European Parliament and CouncilDirectives that make up this EU regulatoryframework. In summary, interested partieshave been invited to comment on thefollowing:

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• General Topics:The strengths and weaknesses ofthe frameworkThe extent to which the frameworkhas achieved its objectivesThe impacts the framework hasproduced to dateImprovements to the frameworkFramework contributions to theLisbon goals

• Specific TopicsScope and objectivesConvergence and technologicaldevelopmentsSingle markets aspects of the frame-workArticle 7 procedures (FrameworkDirective)Spectrum managementCompetition and access regulationAuthorisations and rights of useConsumer protection, citizens’interests and users’ rightsPrivacy and securityStandards and interoperabilityLeased linesInstitutional aspects

Views submitted will provide input toa Commission Communication on thefunctioning of the regulatory frameworkplanned for mid-2006. This will alsolaunch a public consultation on possiblechanges. The full ‘Call for Input’ docu-ment is available at: http://europa.eu.int/information_society/policy/ecomm/doc/info_centre/public_consult/review/511_25_call_for_input_comp.pdf and thedeadline for submissions is 31 January2006.

Next Generation NetworksIn the realm of Next Generation

Networks (NGN) the EU is a leadingfacilitator. For telecoms service providersthroughout the world, the NGN challengeis how to integrate nomadic users andproviders, fixed and wireless access,

Internet networks, and IP-enabledservices into a coherent, secure, and high-quality global public telecommunicationinfrastructure. For the policy-making andregulatory community, embodied, forexample, in the various institutionalstructures of the EU, there is no smallchallenge in trying to ensure that all theright elements are in place to encourageinvestment, infrastructure deployment,and innovation, whilst securing that theneeds of the general public (e.g., forinteroperability and inter-connectivitybetween platforms and services, emer-gency communications, privacy protec-tion, legal interception, security andintegrity issues) are adequately met.Successfully meeting this challengerequires a careful and balanced dialog,and avoidance of a situation whereindustry is left in a vacuum, and 25different national policies and incompat-ible regulatory regimes and networkcapabilities would be implemented forfuture networks and services.

Next Generation TelecomsConference

In Central and Eastern Europe (CEE),a region which has provided some of themost recent countries to gain EU member-ship and where a number of its candidateaccession states are located, the telecom-munications arena has experiencedremarkable growth in recent years. Theliberalization of individual nationaltelecommunication markets across theregion is playing a key, underpinning, rolein encouraging thriving competitivemarkets and in enhancing the availabilityof a wide range of network services, withbroadband access services havingassumed a lead position as key driver ofCEE telecoms growth. But, despite this,questions about the affordability andwider availability of efficient Internetservices still remain.

A roundtable discussion featuringpanelists from Skylogic, Loral Skynet,

Satlynx, Telekom Austria, Laban Commu-nications, and Hungaro DigiTel, andentitled ‘Driving your national broad-band economy with satellite networksolutions’ takes place at the Next Genera-tion Telecoms (NGT) event in Ljubljana,Slovenia, on 31 January next year. Theobjective of this roundtable will be toaddress questions relating to the existingand potential role of satellite communica-tions in providing cost-effective solutionsto increase the reach of digital communi-cations across CEE. Specific topics willinclude:

• DVB-RCS and the deployment ofother ‘standardized’ satellite tech-nologies in emerging CEE markets

• Evaluating satellite technology’scurrent and potential future impact onbroadband Internet penetration inCEE

• Extending the reach of WiFi andWiMax technologies via satellite

• Key market drivers: identifyingeconomies of scale and other factorsto enable affordable high-speedInternet access via satellite

• Meeting the demands of the mobilenext generation user

On 30 January, the day before thesatellite roundtable, GVF will host itsSatellite Business Course @ NGT 2006workshop. Part of its suite of capacity-building courseware, the GVF SatelliteBusiness Course is for professionals whoare engaged in, or are thinking about,starting a satellite communicationsbusiness venture which may, or may not,be closely associated with a pre-existingtelecommunications business whichcurrently focuses on the use of otherplatforms and technologies. The contentis not highly technical, although busi-ness-relevant technical issues are coveredin outline. Some basic understanding ofthe Information Technology and communi-cations industries will be assumed, as willsome basic understanding of business

MARKET INTELLIGENCE

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strategy, marketing and operations.The course content is designed to be

of interest to the following:

• Investors• Business principals• Marketing & Sales management• Customer care management• Implementation management• Financial & Administrative manage-ment• Government policy makers & regula-tors• Telecommunications planners/management• Internet Service Provider (ISP)management• Corporate communications manage-ment• Distance Education providers• Telemedical services providers• NGO management• Donor Government agencies• Anyone else interested in businesseswhich will rely on VSAT technology

Course topic components The course/workshop will cover

business aspects of VSAT orientedbusinesses, including:

Structure of the communicationsindustry and where VSAT fits; Regulatoryframeworks; Types of VSAT-basedbusinesses; Critical Success Factors; Corecompetences; Customer management;Business strategy & planning; Riskanalysis; Outlook for the future; Wheredo we go from here?

The course/workshop will not cover:Detailed technical subjects; Financialplanning; Issues specific to specificbusinesses.

Further details are available from meat GVF on + 44 1727 884513 [email protected].

First proposed by the European Commission in June 2005, i2010 is astrategic framework to promote an open and competitive digital

economy, emphasizing Information and Communication Technologies as adriver of growth and jobs in Europe – the so-called Lisbon Strategy.* ICTsaccount for approximately half of Europe’s recent productivity growth, whilethe ICT industry alone generates 6-8 percent of European Union GDP.Digital convergence will provide the right conditions for continued andaccelerating economic growth only if appropriate regulatory reform is imple-mented and research and development encouraged. In other words, Euro-pean policy must evolve to match the characteristics of the digitally converg-ing marketplace, specifically in respect of:

Single Information Space – Europe’s Information Society mustcreate a “single information space” to leverage the opportunities of converg-ing markets. Digital convergence requires policy convergence aiming at acommon set of regulations governing the supply of content and services andthe operation of networks.

Research – Future European competitiveness depends on significantlyincreased levels of investment in research in ICTs. OECD data for 2002shows that European (EU – 15) investment per inhabitant in ICT stood atjust 80 euro, compared to per capita figures of 350 euro and 400 euro in theUSA and Japan, respectively. In the same study, European ICT R&D as apercentage of Total R&D stood at just 18%, compared to 34% and 35% inthe USA and Japan, respectively.

Inclusive Information Society – The application of ICTs to publicsector services bring immediate benefits. These must be widely availableand accessible to all – Europe must not develop a digital divide, where alack of digital literacy or Internet access in remote regions deprives peopleof better services. i2010 will develop a far-reaching initiative on inclusion,starting with immediate actions on eAccessibility and the broadbandterritorial divide.

For further information: http://europa.eu.int/i2010 & http://europa.eu.int/information_society/

i2010 – European Information Society 2010:For Growth and Employment

Martin Jarrold is the Director, InternationalPrograms of the Global VSAT Forum. He can be reached [email protected] For more information on the GVF gotowww.gvf.org

MARKET INTELLIGENCE

SM

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Colombia is one of the best exampleof using satellite technology in E-Gov programs to break the digital

divide between the main cities and remoteand village areas with low income or ruralpopulation in the developing world.

Compartel is a program created by theColombian government to develop the socialTelecommunications in the country byreaching the most distant rural locations of theColombian territory with very low socioeco-nomic regions. Because of the CompartelProgram some actions have been developed toexpand access to telecommunications,especially Internet and telephony, to mostpeople of those areas. There are 3 mainCompartel subprograms: the Compartel RuralTelephony Program, the Compartel SocialInternet Program and the Compartel Broad-band Connectivity Program for PublicInstitutions

The Broadband Connectivity Programfor public Institutions has been established inorder to address a social and technologicalchallenge: Bridging the Digital Divide. ThisProgram allows to make the broadbandInternet access widely available and affordablefor public institutions located in the most far-away and poorest towns in Colombia, whereis difficult to have access to information andcommunication technologies.

With the Connectivity program, publicinstitutions will have access to informationand communications technologies targetingquality in public education, widen educationalcontents, develop e-government tools formayor offices, and support a more efficientmanagement of public hospitals andtelemedicine programs.

Besides the infrastructure for offeringthe Internet service, the Connectivity Programprovides public institutions with tools to usethese services. Then, the program givescomputers and networks, and includes atraining component focus in the basics ofcomputers.

REGIONAL UPDATE

The program was developed in twophases; the first one began in 2004 and, whencompleted during 1Q2006, will have connected4.020 public schools, 624 mayor offices, 120public hospitals, and 30 military bases. Thesecond phase was launched in November 2005and will connect 3.793 public schools, 427mayor offices, 80 hospitals and 57 remote agrobusinesses. Phase I will last for 6 years, andPhase II for 5 years. 53% of local students,97% of mayor offices in small towns, and 17%of public hospitals will be connected to thebroadband Internet Services.

Compartel Connectivity Program phase2 bid process finished last November wherefive companies presented proposals. The bidcompanies selected to participate in this phasewere: Coldecon, which won the north zone ofthe country, and e-America, which won thesouth zone. An important aspect to mentionas of result of Phase II, both of the winningcompanies offered to increase the bandwidthfor access in 150%.

Coldecon is a company formed by:AIRSPAN NETWORKS INC (57%),TEKCOM LTDA (17%), GEONET S.A (1%),and COLDECON (25%). Their experience inColombia is offering Internet Services, andColdecon is one of the companies with moredial-up Internet clients.

The other provider e-America is acompany formed by: GRUPO ODINSA S.A

Colombia’s Compartel Program LeadSatellite Applications for E-GOV inLatin America in 2006

Connectivity Coverage

1%

58% 58%

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2.003 2.004 2.005 2005-20070

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Centros ProvincialesAlcaldíasMatrículaHospitalesInstituciones EducativasAcum Instit Beneficiadas

Connectivity Coverage

1%

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10%17% 17%

22%14%11%

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2.003 2.004 2.005 2005-20070

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Centros ProvincialesAlcaldíasMatrículaHospitalesInstituciones EducativasAcum Instit Beneficiadas

Bernardo Schneiderman hasover 30 years of experience inthe Satellite & TelecomIndustry. He is the BusinesssDevelopment and TechnicalDirector of Space & TelecomDivison for Futron Corp based in Irvine,CA. USA and is responsible for the WestCoast and the International Market. Hehas global experience in Marketing andEng. Consulting , Sat and TelecomCarriers, VSAT and Telecom Manufactur-ers. Mr Schneiderman has been writingfor the industry during the last 12 yearsand can be contacted [email protected]

(60,9%), INTERNETPOR COLOMBIA S.A(25%), ANDITEL S.A(13,9%), ANDICELS.A.(0,1%), and ODINSAPROYECTOS EINVERSIONES S.A.(0,1%). These companieshave experience in Internetservice in Colombia.Besides Internet porColombia is one of theoperators of the Phase 1 of

the Connectivity Program.

The phase 2 will be developed during 5years. The schedule is divided in three phases:Planning, Installation and Operation. BothColdecon and E-america announced they areplanning to use mainly Satellite technologies(VSAT) for their connectivity. The technologyand space segment will be defined during 2006.At the end of the Connectivity Program(Phase 1 and Phase 2), 53% of publicstudents, 97% of mayor offices in smalltowns, and 17% of public hospitals will beconnected to the broadband Internet Services.In Summary the Compartel Program is usingabout 14 transponders (each one of 27 MHz)to connect all the institutions and the accesscommunity centers. SM

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STOCK MONITORSTOCK MONITORSTOCK MONITORSTOCK MONITORSTOCK MONITOR ADVERTISER’SINDEX

AAE SYSTEMS 17www.aaesys.com

ANACOM 32www.anacominc.com

COLEM 37www.colem.co.uk

COMTECH EF DATA 10www.comtechefdata.com

CPI SATCOM 12www.cpii.com/satcom

GLOBECAST 34www.globecast.com

ILC 26www.ilc.com

ISCe 2006 14www.isce.com

L-3 NARDA SATELLITENETWORKS 28www.lnr.com

MITEQ 16www.miteq.com

PANAMSAT 20www.panamsat.com

SES GLOBAL 9www.ses-global.com

Company Name Symbol Price (Jan. 4) 52-wk Range

APT SATELLITE ATS 1.32 1.12 - 1.57ANDREW CORP ANDW 10.82 10.07 - 14.19ASIA SATELLITE SAT 17.80 16.50 - 20.55TELECOMMUNI-CATIONS (ASIASAT)BALL CORP BLL 41.93 35.06 - 46.45BOEING CO BA 70.7425 49.52 - 72.40BRITISH SKY ADS BSY 35.64 33.59 - 44.99CALAMP CORP CAMP 10.68 5.23 - 12.59C-COM SATELLITE CMI.V 0.32 0.21 - 0.56SYSTEMSCOM DEV INTL LTD CDV.TO 2.16 1.67 - 3.24COMTECH TELECOM CMTL 31.35 21.0267 - 45.65THE DIRECTV GROUP DTV 14.45 13.17 - 17.01ECHOSTAR DISH 28.65 24.44 - 33.52COMMUNICATIONSFREQUENCY FEI 10.7901 9.80 - 15.90ELCTRONICSGILAT SATELLITE GILTF 5.63 5.06 - 7.62NETWORKSGLOBECOMM SYS GCOM 6.74 5.09 - 8.44INCHARRIS CORP HRS 43.96 26.94 - 45.78HONEYWELL INTL HON 37.38 32.68 - 39.50INTL DATACASTING IDC.TO 0.19 0.17 - 0.34INTEGRAL SYSTEMS ISYS 19.22 17.25 - 24.70KVH INDS INC KVHI 9.98 8.54 - 13.23L-3 COMM HLDGS LLL 75.85 64.66 - 84.84LOCKHEED MARTIN LMT 64.56 52.54 - 65.46CORPNEWS CORP NWS 16.49 14.76 - 19.20NORSAT INTL INC NSATF.OB 0.78 0.43 - 1.51NTL INC NTLI 67.90 55.52 - 72.61ORBITAL SCIENCES ORB 13.01 8.84 - 13.23PT PASIFIK SATELLITE PSNRY.PK 0.0001 0.09 - 0.30QUALCOMM INC QCOM 45.18 32.08 - 46.60RADYNE CORPORATION RADN 15.58 7.15 - 15.49SCIENTIFIC ATLANTA SFA 42.85 26.73 - 43.90SIRIUS SATELLITERADIO SIRI 6.32 4.42 - 7.98SES GLOBAL SDS.F 12.45 6.70 - 12.47TRIMBLE NAVIGATION TRMB 36.15 26.64 - 44.55WORLDSPACE INC WRSP 13.12 10.26 - 26.00VIASAT INC VSAT 27.36 17.30 - 28.84XM SATELLITE RADI0 XMSR 27.90 26.16 - 37.31

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http://www.comtechefdata.com

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http://www.ilc.com

http://www.isce.com

http://www.lnr.com

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http://www.panamsat.com


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