Africa and Asia will provide the best growth opportunities for satellite networks in the next decade, industry CEOs said during a May 23 roundtable at Intelsat’s Global Telecommunications Meeting 2005.

“There are areas around the world that are more bandwidth- and data-hungry than before because of the terrestrial [infrastructure] buildup,” said Britt Carina Horncastle, president and CEO of Telenor Satellite Services Holding Inc.

But that buildup did not take place in Africa, leaving opportunities for satellite providers to fill the demand for cellular phone and Internet services in the region, she said.

“We see Africa as the fastest-growing market,” said Jean-Michel Trumpff, managing director of LinkAfrica, which provides services for the African continent. “… The African people want a Pan-African solution.”

Dave McGlade, CEO of Intelsat, said that providing wireless backhaul services in Asia also would provide business opportunities. “There has been an explosion of cellular development in China and India,” he said. “I think satellite will support this growth as it occurs.”

For more on this roundtable discussion, please see the May 30 issue of Satellite News. For more information on subscribing to Access Intelligence’s satellite industry news and information products, please visit us on the Web at https://www.satellitetoday.com.