Broadband a key satellite market driver

Johannesburg, 18 Feb 2004

Broadband is likely to be a key driver in the global satellite industry, which constantly sees paradigm shifts and the uptake of new technology, says Charles Emmert, senior partner at the TelAstra Group.

Emmert was speaking yesterday at the SatCom Africa 2004 satellite technology conference at the Sandton Convention Centre.

Emmert says the satellite industry today is filled with exciting trends, such as increasing recognition of its role being afforded it by government.

"This is not only true of individual governments around the world, but is also something that we are witnessing in a regional context - we are seeing groups of governments, such as those in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) working together in this regard," he says.

"Satellite is beginning to see hybrid applications arising that are Africa-specific. In other words, these are not US designs that are being shoehorned into another country, but ones that are specifically tailored to their environment."

He says that although the market continues to grow, cost is one of the key technical issues, while affordability has become the most important development parameter.

"The market drivers for the foreseeable future will include the Internet, which will require increased transport capacity, while affordable broadband access - which satellite can provide - will result in applications that are increasingly broadband-rich," says Emmert.

"The need for broadband will also be driven by e-business and e-commerce. Access to the supply chain will be governed by increasingly complex applications, so broadband will obviously become more important."

While these are key market drivers, he feels the most significant technology driver in the near future will be that of voice over IP.

Emmert believes there are still more questions than answers surrounding broadband in an African context.

"In order to make it financially viable, one needs to have big capacity, but this in turn requires unprecedented take up from business and consumers, and whether Africa is truly ready for that remains to be seen.

"Perhaps the answer lies in providing a service offering that goes far beyond pure capacity," says Emmert.