Mobile video exceeded 50 percent of global internet trafficfor the first time in 2011 according to the latest The Cisco® Visual Networking Index (VNI) Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast Update.  Global mobile data traffic grew 2.3-fold in 2011, more than doubling for the fourth year in a row. The 2011 mobile data traffic growth rate was higher than anticipated. Last year's forecast projected that the growth rate would be 131 percent. This year's estimate is that global mobile data traffic grew 133 percent in 2011. Among its findings include:

In the fourth quarter of 2011, Norwegian telecommunications company Telenor Group reported revenues for the quarter of NOK 25.4 billion  (US$  4.44 Billion). For the full year of 2011, Telenor’s revenue was NOK 98.5 billion  (US$ 17.2 Billion).

The Russian Telecom Market Generated Rb1.249trn (US$43.4billion) In Service Revenue in 2011, A 5.6% Increase year-on-year according to a new Research and Markets Report entitled:  "Russia Telecom Intelligence Report: Next-Generation Network Rollouts Drive and Bolster Revenue Growth." Data will be the main opportunity in Russia in both the fixed and mobile segments, as operators continue to invest in next-generation networks such as FTTB and LTE, according to the  report.

According to the results of the latest TV Monitor study, for the first time in the history of television in Germany, more viewers are watching TV via satellite than via cable. At the end of 2011, 17.5 million households were watching TV via satellite, almost 900,000 more than in the previous year. Ninety percent of these households were digital, leaving 1.8 million households still in the analogue reception mode. Out of the total, 5.9 million of all satellite households were watching High Definition (HD) TV.

Euroconsult announced today that it expects prospects for the satellite industry to remain favorable over the decade in a variety of areas. The next ten years should see continued growth for commercial markets, while at the same time stagnating growth for government spending should be expected at least through mid-decade.

Despite  the ongoing impact of the Arab Spring protests and a dramatic re-ordering of political affairs still reverberating, the Middle East region remains a key growth area for commercial satellite industry.

This was the assessment of Gordon McMillan, Director of Government Services for global satellite network provider Inmarsat, who projected that the global government and military communications will rise to US$9 billion by 2018 with the Middle East becoming a key growth region for the commercial satellite industry because of the exponential demand for greater bandwidth.

by Martin Jarrold

London, February 1, 2012--Taking place on the second (29thFebruary) and third (1stMarch) days of CABSAT 2012, at the Dubai International Convention & Exhibition Center (DICEC), is GVF MENASAT @ CABSAT, which this year will comprise the Satellite Interference Mitigation Forum, and the Satellite Markets & Services Summit.

In contrast to recent military shows like MILCOM in Baltimore last November and last  year’s WEST show, there is more of a cautious optimism over the impending defense budget cuts now that it’s inevitability has  more or less sunked in.

VSAT operator service revenues grew by 14 per cent to $5.2 billion globally in 2011 according to the 12th Edition of he COMSYS VSAT Report. The VSAT Report is the result of over twelve months of research, involving site visits and interviews with companies from Australia to Argentina and from Pakistan to Peru.

Key findings of the report include:

When The UK Government announced support to finance half of SSTL’s newest radar satellite, it confirmed a trend NSR has seen cropping up in recent times: smaller satellites are gaining ground in both optical and now in SAR markets.As more manufacturers are looking to address this market with finer ground resolution and smaller satellites at a lower cost (£200 million for four 300 kg. SSTL radar satellites), the effect is likely to be a reduction in the cost of data at the end user side.