Fast network speeds are only fast when there is enough bandwidth to go around. When congestion results as more users share the network, the promised peak speeds become meaningless. Just ask today’s terrestrial wireless customers as they try to throttle up use of their new smart phones and tablet devices, only to find that the major carriers are adjusting service plans to throttle down their total bandwidth use.
When it comes to broadband applications, “how much” data you deliver is as important as “how fast”.
It’s a problem that also extends to satellite networks based on standard Fixed Satellite Service (FSS) satellites, but FSS limitations do not have to apply to all two-way satellites.
Unlocking Potential in Broadband Services
The age of specialized satellite architecture is here for broadband by satellite. Eutelsat KA-SAT and our own ViaSat-1 are the first two satellites designed with a focus on total bandwidth throughput. The results are dramatic. Working with ViaSat, KA-SAT built its total capacity to 70 Gbps and ViaSat-1 has shown in testing that its 130 Gbps throughput target is well within reach.
With our recent acquisition of WildBlue Communications, we are the leader in Ka-band residential broadband service in the United States (in fact, in the world). Our new WildBlue distribution, operational, and customer service resources can quickly scale our own service (over 400,000 subscribers) and can help service providers around the world to do the same.
Bridging the Government Bandwidth Gap
This year saw the continuation of these military network-centric communication trends:
■ Growth in total bandwidth demand as military IP communications grows in the same way as in commercial enterprise
■ Increasing reliance on satcom as traditional radios and fixed terrestrial networks fail to serve highly mobile and dispersed forces
As the single largest buyer of commercial satellite capacity, the U.S. government is also experiencing the limitations of today’s FSS satellites. The military faces a huge gap between bandwidth demand and supply in the coming years, and can’t afford the time or budget dollars to develop and build its own new systems.
Fortunately, in cooperation with our international Ka-band broadband customers – Barrett (Canada), Eutelsat (Europe), and Yahsat (Middle East) – we will soon be able to supply much more bandwidth to most of the key U.S. operational areas, all with lower bandwidth costs per Gbps.
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