High Throughput Satellites (HTS) have made the successful transition from concept to reality, but what started as a trickle of satellites has very quickly become a stampede of bandwidth. Virtually every satellite operator around the globe has either placed an HTS platform in orbit or is developing an HTS project.
Keven Lippert, EVP of satellite systems at ViaSat, outlines several growth areas for HTS services. “Our anchor business is delivering high quality broadband services to consumers. The success of our consumer services is the cornerstone for the business areas that we continue to expand into. We anticipate growth in in-flight Internet services to commercial airlines and also in the Department of Defense (DOD) market,” he states.
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Dave Rehbehn, VP of Hughes’ international division, lists several important vertical markets for HTS services. “Everyone wants Internet access. We have rolled out over 1 million HughesNet subscribers in North America and that subscriber base fuels growth into other areas. The aero market shows terrific promise for HTS services. We think the development of flat panel antennas will open up the market even more,” he says.
Launched in January 2016, Intelsat 29e is the first of Intelsat’s next-generation, high throughput Intelsat EpicNG series to successfully launch and enter service. Thierry Guillemin, Intelsat’s chief technology officer, talks of “growing the pie” thanks to new capabilities. “The new HTS platforms will increase the demand for satellite services. Our forecasts show that future HTS capacity will enable $3+ billion of new data applications in the future,” he says.
“The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) estimates that there are 4 billion people without access to the Internet,” Rehbehn states, “but there are lots of areas where people can’t afford a satellite dish of their own. By adding a cellular base station or Wi-Fi hotspot to an HTS antenna you can provide a ‘community VSAT’ that dramatically lowers the overall cost per subscriber.”
The Gartner Group estimates that the total Internet of Things (IoT) market will grow to 50 billion connected devices by 2020, but opinions were mixed whether the IoT market will be a significant growth area for HTS services. “Most IoT applications are better serviced by L-band and S-band solutions. We don’t see HTS as a huge advantage in this market but the evolution of technology, including flat panel antennas, may change this picture,” says Rehbehn.VS
