[Satellite Today 11-06-08] The next ten years will rival the heydays of the late 1990s for the MSS industry with the launch of up to 160 MSS satellites, writes NSR Senior Analyst Claude Rousseau in his report, "Mobile Satellite Services, fourth Edition."
    "That total does not count the number of FSS transponders in C-, Ku- and X-band that will also be available to the mobile satellite market,” writes Rousseau. “However, despite positive launch and supply trends, the stakes have never been so high given the turbulence in global financial and economic markets, which may affect demand."
    The report covers eight global regions for MSS equipment and services, as well as transponder demand for satellite handhelds, narrowband and broadband solutions, mobile satellite TV, and MSS-ATC/CGC for the period 2006-2017.
    Other highlights of the report include NSR forecasting that the MSS market will reach more than 18 million in-service units and generate retail revenue of $17.1 billion for the period 2006-2017.
    Rousseau states that in the coming years, the MSS business will be driven by better global coverage, convergence of media, IP-based communications and lower cost per bit as it reaches a wider set of end-user markets. However, the current credit crisis compounds the overhang on finances which, for many MSS operators, is reaching critical levels as they seek to fund the ground and space infrastructure for new services launch.
    “As a partial answer, operators are moving down the value-chain by acquiring pieces of their distribution network to reap higher retail margins,” said Rousseau. “But in the end, the long-overdue horizontal consolidation of operators is likely to provide more durable solutions to solve the economics of a promising MSS business. The hope is that MSS operators should come out of this process healthier with lower debt ratios, expanded product suites and leaner capital requirements in time for lift-off.”