The Fixed Satellite Services (FSS) operators have all weathered the financial crisis and even managed to continue to grow their businesses in 2009 and are continuing to grow in the first half of 2010. However, the big question is: “What is their next act?"

by NSR

Cambridge, MA, September 20, 2010-In 2010, the UN-HABITAT’s report, State of the World Cities 2010/2011: Bridging the Urban Divide found that the global population has reached its tipping point, a condition where populations are more urban than rural. Today, 50.6% live in urban areas, and the trend is irreversible. Increased urban populations may be taking away a vital market for satellite backhaul.

Since satellite backhaul is really a proposition for rural and underserved areas, population trends initially do not appear to favor satellite

Eutelsat Communications announced the key highlights of its two-yearly survey of television reception by satellite and cable homes.

First conducted  in 1994 and covering Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, the key objective of the survey is to measure the trends of three main indicators in the broadcasting market:

The satellite industry is taking a positive step forward in supporting the maritime community through the creation of the GVF Maritime Satcom Forum. This new working group, being spearheaded by the GVF, includes the top manufacturers, network operators and service providers in the industry.

A new analysis by SNL Kagan  reveals that the U.S. multichannel market delivered its worst performance on record in the second quarter, losing 216,000 customers compared to a 378,000 gain in the same period last year.

The World Teleport Association (WTA) just published its 2010 update of Sizing the Teleport Market, which provides the only market data on the teleport sector, from number of facilities to revenues, workforce and purchasing power.   WTA's Executive Director Robert Bell deconstructs the study and its implications for the industry.

The opening plenary session of the IBC2010 conference will feature an address by Sir Michael Lyons, the chairman of the BBC Trust, on the future of public service broadcasting.

The CASBAA Convention 2010 to be held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Hong Kong on October 25th – 28th will be focusing on digital content delivery. This year’s theme is “Unlock Your Networks” and it aims to connect the dots between Platforms, Channels, Technologies and Partnerships.

NSR’s annual review of the wireless backhaul via satellite market shows the industry made tremendous gains from the blistering pace of wireless subscriber growth in 2009 and the first half of 2010. Despite a challenging economic environment, the wireless industry was one of the global economic bright spots, which led to sustained demand for satellite backhaul services for use primarily in rural markets. 

Despite a limited market slowdown, the fixed satellite market reached a new high in revenues last year, according to Euroconsult’s soon-to-be-released report “Satellite Communications & Broadcasting Markets Survey, Forecasts to 2019.” The fixed satellite sector grew both in terms of transponder demand (+5.3%) and revenue reaching $10.3 billion revenue in 2009. The company maintains a positive outlook for the future of the industry.