[Satellite TODAY Insider 09-19-11] While new developments in technology have put the broadband satellite industry in a position to compete with DSL providers in Europe and North Africa, satellite is lagging behind its competitors in the ultra-fast broadband market, according to an Idate study issued Sept. 16.

   Satellite’s latest connectivity speed enhancements have enabled certain providers to deliver downlink speeds of up to 10 Mbps in certain areas where DSL subscribers are underserved and unable to connect to terrestrial networks. The Idate report, “Ultra broadband via Satellite – Fourth Edition,” explored developments in national broadband plans in the United States, Asia and Europe, and examimed the positioning of satellite solutions compared to other alternative technologies like 3.5G and LTE. The study notes that bandwidth speeds are often below 2 Mbps in regions that are too far from DSLAM service connectivity.

    “Most of the major countries of Europe, North America and Asia have adopted national plans for the large-scale rollout of ultra-fast broadband networks” Idate Project Director and Co-Head of Satellite Practice Maxime Baudry said in the report. “In most instances, however, the technological choices are geared towards deploying FTTx, combined with LTE. Only a handful of countries, including France and Australia view satellite as a credible alternative for delivering super-fast services of around 50 Mbps downlink by 2015.”

Baudry notes that the most advanced satellite developments promise 50 Mbps service speeds by 2015, which will end up competing with large-scale rollouts of FTTx and LTE services set for launch between 2011 and 2020 and delivering download speeds of 30-70 Mbps.

   “Because of this sluggish pace, which needs to be set against the thriving momentum in the terrestrial telecom market, ultra-fast broadband via satellite runs the risk of not becoming available until LTE is already widely deployed across the various markets thanks to infrastructure-sharing schemes, which means it will already have lost a sizeable number of potential subscribers,” Baudry said.

   Regardless of the competition, Idate predicts that the number of broadband satellite customers in the Europe/North Africa region will increase by an annual rate of 34 percent to reach a total 800,000 subscribers by 2015, compared to approximately 123,000 at the end of 2010. The biggest progress will be seen in North Africa, which unlike Europe, does not have a robust fixed or mobile infrastructure.

   “Idate estimates that the growth potential for a broadband satellite offer in this region is very strong, provided that price points are tailored to the economic realities in the different countries. The future success of a service in this region will also depend on how it positions itself with respect to competing wireless/cellular technologies, which are enjoying a very healthy momentum today,” Baudry said.