The industry of satellites is at the end of the road in the business model for selling favors to cell networks. Since costs have dropped as technological advances have boosted, quality and bandwidth demands from mobile operators have been increasing. In addition, the demand is not fueled by regulations or government subsidies but rather by profits. Mobile operators can earn money by using backhaul cellular to attract new customers by offering top-quality 4G services. For more related articles visit unlimited wireless internet.

5G is likely to be the wave of the future of mobile technology in the advanced world. Still, worldwide more than two-thirds of mobile users don’t have a 4G connection in Cisco’s Mobile Data. Forecast Update published earlier in the year. Mobile operators “are in the process of deploying 4G networks to respond to the growing demand from end-users for increased bandwidth, greater security, and more speedy connection on the move,” the networking giant discovered and predicted an increase in connection speeds to 4G of around 18% annually. 

Cisco

In 2022 Cisco said that by 2022 when the technology is just beginning to take off, more than fifty percent (53 percent) from all connections to mobile networks will have 4Gmore than 60% in Europe in those in the Asia Pacific regions. This rapid growth in 4G is already causing an ever-growing requirement for data. 

According to Cisco 4G users generally utilize three times the amount of data 3G users use and ten times more than 2G users. The data must be backhauled. In the words of Vinay Patel, Director of the product line for satellite- and cellular backhaul and satellite-equipped Wi-Fi from Hughes Network Systems, that’s the role of satellites. “The differences in the demand for data between 3G, 2G, and 4G] lies part of the standard. What bandwidth each technology can transmit to your phone and directly translate to the amount of bandwidth you’ll need to the backhaul process,” the expert says to Via Satellite.

The higher speeds of mobile phones encourage users to use greater bandwidth-intensive applications, such as streaming video, as per this Cisco study, “such that a smartphone that is on a 4G network will be likely to generate substantially more traffic than a comparable model phone using an 3G network.”

According to Cisco, the demand for mobile data will increase the fastest in emerging regions such as Africa, which has more remote population areas. No infrastructure can reach.

Satellite connectivity at lower cost “enables mobile companies to provide access to areas that are difficult for them to access.” Patel says of Hughes the backhaul business. The under-served or un-serviced communities don’t have an optical fiber connection. “They may not have roads, and they might not have reliable electricity” and, according to conditions, might not have the line-of-sight connection required for microwave backhaul, too.

“Most under-served regions face difficulties due to infrastructure reliability, geography and a low population density which makes it economically impossible or physically unattainable to utilize microwave and fiber” to backhaul, says Karl Horne, vice president for Telco/Mobile Network Operator (MNO) data solutions.

Connecting Iquitos

The trifecta of problems confronted this distant Peruvian town of Iquitos, the sixth-largest urban center situated at the edge of the Amazon rainforest and accessible only by water or air. The local mobile operator Entel offered Iquitos with “an extremely basic 3G service that was deployed using a low-quality terrestrial radio link,” Horne tells Via Satellite.

Then, last year Entel teamed up in a partnership with SES and Latin American satellite solution provider Axesat. One year later, Horne boasts, “We are extremely proud to announce we were able to say that … Entel was providing unlimited 4G plans in all of the capital city.” Mobile customers received the same 10 Megabits per second (Mbps) speed of data download experienced by its customers in Lima, the Peruvian capital Lima.

It’s in these remote communities that satellites can truly help, according to Hughes’ Patel. “We cooperate with mobile operators to demonstrate how they can reach the remote villages or towns … that really would like to be connected, and they deserve the right to have access,” Patel adds.

“Wherever there’s a problem with backhaul satellites can meet that gap,” he adds.

Each market is unique, impacting the speed and size of the new 4G rollouts. “Each operator operates at their own pace,” claims Patel. “It is all dependent on the structure of their costs within their market and the capacity of their customers to pay” for the higher prices for 4G service.

The antenna that connects a cell tower with satellites, it’s called the Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT), is “a low-power operation,” Patel adds. “If you’re struggling with energy or the power source is not reliable, you could place a solar [panelinside with battery backups.”

VSAT ground terminals connected with the towers they are serving and connected to an internet connection connected by VSAT’s VSAT antenna with the cell hardware that sends the signal to mobile phones within their cell. “Mobile operators typically have several versions of equipment in their cell locations,” said Patel. “They may have 2G or 4G (signals that originate directly from the tower), and the ground station must be able to support all the generations.”

Hughes’ Jupiter ground system is “optimized and engineered to carry 4G data in a streamlined way,” says Patel, noting that it can be used with any satellite.

The modem transforms the satellite signal into a cellular one and vice versa, making cell signals into radio signals that the satellite can receive and transmit back to the gateway for the network at the ground.

The gateway to the ground “takes traffic from thousands of websites,” explains Patel. “It’s the point of convergence at which all traffic is taken in and then directed to the network it has to connect to.”

Growing capacity is due to technological advancements like the High Throughput Satellites (HTS) -as well as the increasing amount of Geostationary Orbit (GEO), Medium-Earth Orbit (MEO), and, soon, low-earth orbit (LEO) satellites. “There are ever-growing numbers of satellites, and they are getting higher and better performance,” said Patel, “The final word is that there’s plenty of capacity,” which can drive prices down.

“The VSAT is pretty low cost in terms of capital expenditure, and the cost of capacity is decreasing … as well. The expert added and that is really making the business case” to mobile service providers.

New Cost Structures New Cost Structures, New Markets Markets

Lower prices allow satellites to better compete against terrestrial options, which boosts demand, according to Lluc Palerm-Serra, an analyst at the senior level with Northern Sky Research.

“In earlier times, mobile operators] viewed satellite as the connectivity of last resort. However, thanks to the falling cost of satellites and technological advancements, satellite has become less competitive,” the expert says.

It’s not just the falling cost of goods and services causing this increase in competitiveness. There have also been significant technological advancements. “Making any 2G, 3G, or even 4G work with satellites can be difficult. There are technical barriers that need to be over.”

The capacity of throughput has increased dramatically. “Five years ago, having a ground-based terminal that could provide 100Mbps would have been top of the line technologically advanced. Today, it’s more widespread,” Palerm-Serra says.

There have been many technological advancements in tackling latency, jitter, and deformation of packets.

These changes are happening in a period when mobile operators, particularly in emerging markets, are expanding their 4G services into previously unor untapped communities, mostly in semi-rural or rural regions, where infrastructure for terrestrial is not feasible or costly.

Together, they indicate this: the industry of satellites has reached a crucial tipping point, says Palerm-Serra. “In earlier times, we could have observed mobile operators utilize satellites to connect to rural or semi-rural communities] because they had a legal obligation or a subsidy from the government to offer this connection … Now, we’ve reached a point at which mobile operators] are earning money by selling satellite connectivity. They don’t require any incentive or regulatory requirement anymore … This is creating a lot of new demand.”

The Cost Curve is bent.

“Currently bandwidth prices are between $2 and $300 per month per Mbps and is a fraction of what it was three or four years back,” he adds.

The $200 number is crucial, as it’s the threshold at which base stations with a capacity of up to 500 Gigabytes (Gb) per month is — on average — more affordable to operate using satellite backhaul rather than terrestrial, based on NSR statistics.

Yet, satellites offer backhaul for just 1 two percent or less of mobile phone sites globally, which translates to annual revenues in the range of $1.3 billion. This is approximately 10% of the satellite industry’s earnings this year, a percentage expected to increase to around 15-20 percent over the next ten years.

In short, it will be “small in the world of telecom, however, is more important for satellite companies” and is growing in importance, according to Palerm-Serra.

The falling cost of goods and services can be a double-edged weapon for any industry, particularly satellites, where capital expenses are at an all-time high. The biggest risk of satellite owners is their product bandwidth — it gets more expensive, which will force prices to fall.

“With the decline in the cost of capacity satellite operators must be more efficient in capturing this value chain. This means providing more services to mobile operators. This means that they can be closer to the user,” says Palerm-Serra.

“Most mobile operators do not know what to do with satellite communications … However, the businesses that will succeed (in the new, low cost market] are the ones who make it simple for their customers by providing end-to-end service” in some instances, including the building and maintenance of the towers on their own, as he concludes.

That’s the way SES refers to it as its “end-to-end controlled mobile networks service.” They promote their standards-based, transparent method of operation. “We chose to develop an open, standard-based framework for network operations that allows customers to better and more cost-effectively extend their networks via satellite access connections and bring applications to the edgeof their network,” Horne says. Horne.

Demand

Patel explained that Hughes is also looking to handle as much demand as mobile operators requested. “In these areas, such as that of the Americas … in which we have satellite bandwidth capacity, we’ll bundle it in with ground equipment if we accomplish not have the capability. We’ll find an affiliate to bundle it in if the mobile operator wants an all-in-one shop or can purchase the bandwidth separately, should they wish to.”

Intelsat is also reaching into the new business model. It is partnering with and investing in Africa Mobile Networks to provide a soup-to-nuts offering for mobile operators it calls a “network-as-a-service” solution. The partnership will help fund development, construct, and manage several satellite-connected cell tower networks across Africa’s “ultra-rural” areas and then provide mobile users access, which will increase their customer base without any capital commitments and operational risks.

However, being a service-oriented business “is totally different model of business” that satellite operators are accustomed to, according to Palerm-Serra. For example, they are used to operating with extremely high EBITA margins, but “becoming a service-oriented company is going to change everything.”

Beyond Backhaul

Beyond the traditional backhaul business and in contrast to the network-as-a-service offering available, the latest technology for satellites in 4G is a new generation of direct-to-satellite technology. These devices utilize lightly modified off-the-shelf mobile chips and stronger antennas to receive a 4G signal straight to orbit instead of via the cell tower.

The direct satellite connection to 4G is at a testing stage, according to Luca Palerm-Serra, who is a principal analyst for Northern Sky Research.

Several companies have these play among them Lockheed Martin. “We’re currently working on testing on the ground, and we’ll be able to begin live testing once the satellite goes up in the next calendar year.” Joe Baldasano, the system’s chief engineer and systems engineer for the giant of the beltway, informs Via Satellite.

Lockheed is developing both sides of the technology spectrum: The ground system, and the satellite, says Dawna Morningstar, the company’s director of common and international ground solutions.

The latest technology will come with two terminals: A mobile one similar to a tablet and a larger model specifically designed for ship or truck-board applications. Both are designed to receive the 4G signal directly from a satellite and then offer the short-range high bandwidth connections that 4G users have come to expect through a Wi-Fi connection to the smartphone or another mobile device. The non-portable model will feature “a smaller antenna and a bit more power for the transmit part,” says Baldasano, which means better connectivity and/or a greater number of users.

The performance of the devices used by the users is comparable to that of a traditional 4G smartphone, as he explained, “It’s like a big cell tower that is in space.”

The terminal is controlled via physical handsets or an app that runs on a mobile phone, displaying who’s connected and the amount of information they’re using.

The technology is designed to work with many different scenarios and has this feature in typical. “It’s for when you’re out of reach of mobile phone network,” says Baldasano.

He suggests that fishing fleets and other maritime assets could be a potential target market as first responders. Move into areas of disaster where the traditional network was either down or overloaded.

There are clients lined up, and the first ones to sign up will be purchasing satellites, too, says Morningstar.

Lockheed and other companies are competing to establish the standard for the next technological generation. The ground terminals that the company is creating are. “Optimized to use with the new satellite Lockheed is developing,” says Baldasano. But they can also be used with any satellite. Which can create a beam that conforms to the GMR-2 standards for 4G. If it meets the power and sensitivity. As well as also Radio Frequency (RF) requirements, then you will be able to receive signals.”

Lockheed seems to be heading at the same market result. That other companies are trying to avoid the process of commoditization.

“There’s no hardware that is unique to the phone, or in other devices in the market. It’s all off the shelves,” Baldasano says. “The chip is that used present in today’s 4G phones. A part of the firmware has been updated to cope with the added latency you receive via satellite … However, the main goal is to take advantage of the ecosystem of 4G … If you’re using VSAT, it’s a VSAT the technology is not public. If you want to improve the technology is your responsibility to create it yourself. It won’t get better unless you can enhance it by yourself. With LTE you are able to benefit from the efforts of the entire community of developers to enhance this technology … in the long term you’ll have vendor autonomy and the cost of equipment will be lower due to the ability to reuse the hardware of a commodity.” VS