Near East/Middle East
Satellite broadband, DBS, satellite telephony, military applications and business voice/data communications all are growth applications in the Near East and Middle East. In fact, this region is making substantial progress in joining the global telecom community, despite the repressive policies of its nations.
One country that is seeing a boom in satellite communications is Iraq, where military and aid workers need reliable high-speed links to their out-of-country headquarters. Raytheon's First Responder vehicles are deployed there to support the Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance (ORHA).
"Three First Responders are in Iraq, providing telecom services to the people doing the rebuilding that they wouldn't otherwise have," said Ken Knotts, Raytheon's First Responder project manager. "Wherever the First Responder is parked, ORHA workers have access to global telephone and Internet service at 64 kbs, plus the ability to work remotely using laptops that are wirelessly linked to the First Responder."
The First Responder's usefulness has been applauded by none other than Henrik Olesen, who is serving as an administrative director to the Iraqi provisional government. In an "e-mail of appreciation" he sent from Iraq on May 8, 2003, Olesen said, "I cannot overstate the importance of the First Responder and the technical team to the success of the humanitarian efforts that are ongoing here in Al Basrah. Prior to their arrival, we had absolutely no IT capabilities and were solely dependent on our Thuraya phone for outside communications. This was a massive impediment to our ability to help the people of Iraq."
The First Responder is just one satellite initiative that is aiding Iraqi reconstruction. Another is the work of Globecomm Systems, which deployed satellite voice and data communications to Baghdad following the fall of Saddam Hussein. "This contract, while not large in nature, further validates the quick reaction capabilities of Globecomm as the project was implemented in less than one week," says David Hershberg. He is being humble: Globecomm's assistance restored international telephone service and Internet access to undisclosed users in Baghdad. The war had cut them off from the outside world; Globecomm reconnected them.
Africa
Africa has long been touted as the toughest place to make money from satellites. This too is changing, however, as Africans develop a hunger for satellite broadband, business voice/data, and rural telephony.
Of these three, satellite broadband is perhaps the most perplexing application to Simon Bull, senior consultant at Comsys. "I've said it before and I will say it again; I don't know where Africans are finding the money to deploy and use satellite broadband," says Bull. "But they are." One answer may be the proliferation of "Internet caf�s" throughout the continent. By paying for computers and satellite access directly, then renting it out to clients, such caf�s make Internet access and e-mail affordable for cash-strapped Africans.
Opportunities Continue
Across the globe, satellite-driven applications are proving to be moneymakers. Better yet, the applications that are proving themselves run the gamut from consumer to business and government; single sites to national networks comprising hundreds and even thousands of earth stations. Moreover, as satellite users reap the benefits of these applications, their appetite for more of the same only increases. This is good news for the satellite industry, and for the people who rely on it.
James Careless is senior contributing editor to Via Satellite magazine.
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