SatelliteBroadcastingServices

SATMAGAZINE.COM

2Back to Contents

November 2004

Click on the title to godirectly to the story

3 / Note from the Editor

4 / Calendar of Events

5-8 / Featured Event: ISCe 2005

9-11 / Industry News

12-14 / Executives Moves

15-17 / New Products

38 / Market Intelligence: Three A’s for

VSAT-presented by the Global VSAT Forumpresented

40 / Stock Monitor / Advertiser’s Index

.

By Bruce Elbert

By Juan M. Martinez

Vol. 2 No. 7, November 2004

TABLE OF CONTENTS

18 / What is a VSAT? 23 / VSATsInstallationTools forCost-EffectiveDeployment in a

Consumer Market

27 /Doomsday“Liquidation”for Voom?

30 / Satellites Help Forecast Major Earthquakes

By Chris Forrester By Tom Bleir

Integrasys’ SatmotionPocket simplies anddramatically reduces costof consumer VSATinstallation andcommissioning.

The satellite industry needsmore HD, not less, andVoom seems to be soundvalue for money.

QuakeFinder develops asatellite and ground-baseddetection method that,when completed andtested, would allow forwarning of an earthquakeone week in advance.

33 /Middle EastSatellite Turmoil

ArabSat, Nilesat andNoorSat compete forviewer loyalty in theKingdom of Saudi Arabia.But there is also opti-mism for co-operationamongst the various pay-TV platforms.

By Chris Forrester

VSATs can better addressvertical markets in suchareas as rural communica-tions to developing regions,disaster recovery, temporaryservices and others. Thereare bottlenecks that impedegreater reliance on VSATs,but there are also solutions.

COVER STORY FEATURES VIEWPOINT

EXECUTIVESPOTLIGHT

REGIONALUPDATE

33 /Interview with Gilat Chairman and CEO Shlomo Rodav

REGULAR DEPARTMENTS

VSAT market leader GilatCEo Shlomo Rodavspeaks to SatMagazineon a wide range ofissues.

SATMAGAZINE.COM

23Back to Contents

November 2004

FEATURES

The VSAT market has turned and focused into the consumer market, due

to the large volumes ofinstallations world-wide, openinga new world of possibilities andbusiness opportunities.

By its design, VSATs areconceived as Rx/Tx equipment.By its functionality, they areused for data, voice and videocommunications. By its dimen-sions they are very appropriateboth for civil (corporate net-works, emergencies, etc) andmilitary applications (supportand strategy). And, finally, itscapacity to offer broadband withcompetitive costs againstterrestrial networks, makes themthe future of the satellite indus-try.

Recent market analysis andforecasts indicate that there isactually room for satellite broadband technology in the con-vulsed scenario of telecommunications world, envisioning asteadily increasing penetration of this technology in the comingyears. This trend is backed by the inherent advantages ofsatellite communication systems, such as rapid deployment andlow initial investment to reach wide coverage areas; synergywith successful broadcast video services; reduced number ofoperations centres and direct provisioning.

There are very important technologies involved in newVSAT markets, such as the communication protocols(IP,ATM,MPEG) or the network topologies that have been welldeveloped to provide an excellent service; however, the busi-

ness issues currently rely on: low cost, high bandwidth, andeasy integration with other networks and applications .

There has been a great effort done by industry in reducingthe cost of VSAT equipment, to be able to compete withterrestrial networks in an open consumer market, but there areother costs involved, such as installation and commissioning,that still need to be addressed.

The VSAT world has had traditionally a high degree ofprofessionalism and costly personnel involved in installationand commissioning. The elements that compose a simpleinstallation (dish, horn, waveguides, transmitter, LNB, receiver)are easy to assembly, but their functionality and the operations

VSATs Installation Tools for Cost EffectiveDeployment in a Consumer MarketBy Juan M. MartinezIntegrasys, SA

SATMAGAZINE.COM

24Back to Contents

November 2004

to be performed to make themoperational (downlink alignment,configuration, line-up, fine adjust-ment and final commissioning) arequite complex and require time,skilled personnel and co-ordinationwith the NOC.

This is a real and hidden fact,which makes VSAT installationexpensive and do not allow to takefull advantage of the technologicaldevelopmentstowards costimprovementsuch asstandardisationefforts likeDVB-RCS,antenna andODU pre-assembly, IDUpre-configura-tion...

Thegreatestcompetitiveadvantagethat two-waysatelliteinternet

operators offer to potential customers is tobe able to cover areas where no othercommunications are available. These areasrepresent the real satellite businessopportunity, but increases very muchinstallation difficulties and costs, as nocommunications are easily available in thefield for NOC co-ordination.

In these areas, the installer has onlythe VSAT and the satellite, and possibly afield strength meter. He has not alwaysremote assistance, sometimes due totechnical reasons, other just because thereis no other way of communication with theNOC rather than the satellite itself. Mea-surement instruments are not alwaysavailable or the measurements are not validbecause the measurements required to

FEATURES

successfully complete the installation are not based on theVSAT transmitted signals, but those of the received downlinkand, by no means, the transmitted CW line-up carrier measure-ment information available at the NOC: EIRP level, cross-polarization isolation, interference.

Complex installations...and expensive

Back to basics, the theory is very clear: a misalignment of 1ºin the polarization of the reference axis causes small losses in thepolar coupling ( 20log(cos1º) = -0,001 dB), but increases 35 dB

Integrasys’SATMOTIONPOCKET (US patentpending 10/408710) isa simple and low-costtool for VSAT install-ers.

SATMAGAZINE.COM

25Back to Contents

November 2004

the x-polar component (isolationlost=20log(cos89)). Obviously, this is anundesirable effect in operation and not onlyfor that particular VSAT, but also for otherVSATs within the same network.

If this is a real fact for just one singleinstallation, how could it impact hundreds orthousands of simultaneous installations in anactual consumer market? What can be doneby the satellite operator to avoid thissituation? Will this business be, as it isdesired and expected, a big success or will itbe a chimera for all: users, installers andoperators ?

“Complex techniques,professional installations”. Thiswas the paradigm of the 20thcentury. However, already in the21st, it seems we have a new one:“Complex techniques, profes-sional installations, low cost “.

The satellite and the VSATis everything the installer haswhen he is on the roof...and all heneeds.

Integrasys, the technology-leader in Satellite Carrier Monitoring Systems, has developedSATMOTION POCKET (US patent pending 10/408710), thesimplest and lowest cost tool for installers to perform profes-

FEATURES

SATMAGAZINE.COM

26Back to Contents

November 2004

FEATURES

sional VSAT installations in the field without the need forspecial equipment nor additional expensive tools, instru-ments or knowledge.

The measurement system (spectrum analyzer, switch-ing matrix, server computer and server software) can behosted at the Hub station, NOC or at any other place underthe satellite fingerprint. Just using a satellite downlink and asimple PDA or laptop PC plus software, the installer receivesthe polar and x-polar information from the measurementsystem using the receiver portion of the VSAT he isaligning. The communication between the installer PDA andthe IDU is wireless, so a small wi-fi access point is con-nected to the IDU ethernet port allowing more than 50meters range up to the antenna. The lack of voice communi-cations between the installer and the NOC is no longer aproblem applying this solution; all the information regardingthe VSAT CW line-up carrier gathered by the NOC carriermonitoring system is made available in real-time to theinstaller hands.

The PDA user interface is simple, but highly powerfulin functionality; it manages both, the VSAT configurationparameters while graphically displaying in real time the CWcarrier as it is received by the NOC measurement system.The SATMOTION POCKET system puts on the installerhands a professional tool using a handy PDA or laptop PCwhich provides the installer with all the monitoring capabili-ties available at the NOC.

The system handles multiple concurrent line-ups bymeans of a multi-CW scheme where the measurementsystem is time-shared by up to 10 concurrent installers peranalyzer without performance degradation; configuringadditional analyzers into the system, it is possible tosupport any number of concurrent installations.

SUMMARY

Currently, VSAT consumer business deploymentexhibits hidden costs due to the required qualified installa-tion personnel and NOC co-ordination to perform installa-tions at the customer site.

The massive deployment of the two-way market nolonger can support this fact in terms of costs, time andquality.

Traditional measurement hardware plus controlsoftware modules combined with the Internet technologiesand quality measurement procedures are the guidelines that

SM

JUAN M. MARTINEZ,Product Manager, INTEGRASYS, SA

He holds a MSc in Telecommunications Engineering & MSc

in Software Development and a BSEE degree in Electronic

equipment. With 10 year experience in telecommunication

project management, he has had several key positions in

software development , engineering and Sales Divisions in

different telecom companies.

He is currently Product Manager for Satellite Carrier Monitor-

ing Product-line at INTEGRASYS, SA. He can be reached at

juan.martinez@integrasys-sa.com or www.integrasys-sa.com

Integrasys has applied, by means of itsSATMOTION POCKET product, to simplifyand dramatically reduce costs of consumerVSAT installation and commissioning.