News Analysis

Update on the Australian National Broadband Network

Dublin, Ireland, July 4, 2012--Several things became clear during the privatisation process of Telstra in the 00s. Broadband quality was below the international benchmark; end-user and wholesale prices were above that mark; and there was no economically viable business case for high-speed broadband infrastructure for regional and rural Australia. This is according to a recent Research and Markets report entitled "Australia - The National Broadband Network."

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China Is at Forefront of Connected TV Trend in Emerging Markets

Santa Clara, Calif., June 12, 2012—Over one‑quarter of TVs shipped during Q1’12 were equipped with internet connectivity, as reported in the new NPD DisplaySearch Quarterly Smart TV Shipment and Forecast Report, which tracks connected and smart TV shipments by brand, region, display technology and screen size. Approximately 27% of TV sets shipped worldwide had internet connectivity, led by Japan, where 46% of sets had networking capability, and Western Europe with 36%. In a good example of how internet entertainment is developing rapidly in emerging markets, China followed closely behind Western Europe with 32% of sets that shipped having internet functionality.

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Maritime VSATs: From Crew Amenity to Corporate Necessity

by Chris Frith

Singapore, June 4, 2012--Many fleet owners, looking to improve the lives of their crew by providing an affordable means for them to keep in touch with family and friends while onboard, turn to VSAT-based solutions to provide the connectivity.    But it doesn’t need to stop there.  The same VSAT system can be used to improve the bottom-line by enabling closer integration between ship and shore operations, just in the same way VSATs are used the world over to link branch offices to their headquarters.  This article examines the wide variety of ship based applications proactive fleet managers are now using their satellite link for. 

Strong Demand Driving the Asia-Pacific Satellite Market

by Peter Galace

Manila, June 4, 2012--Driven by the continued strong demand for satellite services in the Asia Pacific region, the industry’s most important drivers -- high-definition TV conversion, DTH television and intercontinental video transmissions-- remain in high growth mode. Multi-year contracts of satellite operators are enabling the industry to maintain a dependable revenue stream despite the turmoil in other parts of the world. Transponder fill rates have remained generally high with good revenues from transponder leasing and purchase of satellite equipment by Asian countries remain buoyant.

Emerging Markets Sustain Robust Growth for Satellite TV Platforms

Paris, May 24, 2012--Euroconsult  announced today that the satellite pay-TV industry reached revenues close to $90 billion in 2011, up from $79 billion in 2010. Global industry revenues are expected to reach close to $150 billion in 2021, with emerging markets (i.e. Latin America, Central Europe, Russia, the Middle East, Africa and Asia) representing a growing share of revenues that will nearly double over the next ten years to reach 44% by 2021.

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Point Topic Reveals Who has Weathered the Broadband Crunch

London, May 22, 2012--Latest figures released today by leading broadband analyst firm Point Topic, reveal which countries have triumphed the broadband “crunch”, and those that have battled their way through to meet, or even exceed, expectations set in 2009.Oliver Johnson, CEO at Point Topic, said: “This has been a difficult period for the world. Markets have been subject to a number of internal and external shocks that have made it pretty difficult for crystal ball gazers. Our global projection from May 2009 ended up being just over 3.5% too optimistic compared to the actual numbers reported at the end of 2011.”

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Huawei Leads 19 Million Indian Set-Top Box Market with 24% Share

Singapore, May 21, 2012--The Indian set-top box (STB) market has been increasing at a steady pace over the past few years. A strong surge of consumers moved to satellite platforms during 2011, representing 80% of the Indian market. Despite the large cable TV subscriber base in India, satellite TV growth will slow somewhat from the 10 million consumers that added services last year.

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5.8 Million 3G Subscribers in Singapore

Singapore, May 11, 2012--Singapore has continued to grow both its mobile subscriber base (152% penetration by December 2011) as well as its value-added data services. The launch of 3G services has been particularly insightful. There was an obvious period of uncertainty surrounding the introduction of 3G. After launch in 2005 the take up rate was initially slow. Subsequently, however, there has been a strong upsurge in demand. No doubt this has been helped by the wider availability of more affordable, high feature handsets. By early 2012, there were more than 5.8 million 3G subscribers in a country where the total mobile market was around 7.8 million. In other words 3G subscribers represented a compelling 74% of the total subscriber base as 3G rapidly became the normal' mobile service in the country, according to a new Research and Markets report.

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The Global Content Delivery Network Market to Grow At A CAGR Of 23.5 Percent over the Period 2011-2015

Dublin, Ireland, May 10, 2012--The Global Content Delivery Network market to grow At A CAGR Of 23.5 percent over the period 2011-2015  according to a new Research and Markets report entitled: "Global Content Delivery Network Market 2011-2015" report. One of the key factors contributing to this market growth is the efficient utilization of bandwidth. The Global Content Delivery Network market has also been witnessing the Media Entertainment sector adopting IP-based networks. However, the high cost factor could pose a challenge to the growth of this market.

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HTS-Powered Consumer Broadband Services: Are They Late to the Party?

by Rajiv Hazaray

Bordertown, NJ, May 2, 2012--During Satellite 2012, the Society of Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) bestowed the Industry Innovators Awards on Eutelsat Communications and ViaSat Inc in recognition of the development and launch of their High Throughput Satellites (HTS), KA-SAT and ViaSat-1, respectively. High frequency reuse and multiple spot beam architecture have packed 10 times capacity on these Ka-Band satellites without any deployment cost penalties.