News Analysis

by Blaine Curcio

Hong Kong, December 4, 2020--Many things have happened in the satcom industry in 2020. We as an industry have responded to Covid with a flurry of webinars, virtual conferences, LinkedIn posts, and an endless variety of podcasts. Meanwhile, satellite operators have been evolving, with 5G spectrum reallocation moving full steam ahead in some markets (including my home market of Hong Kong, one of the world’s leading assassins of C-band for satellite). 

by Lou Zacharilla

New York City, NY, December 3, 2020--Given the choice between wrestling a live alligator in a Florida pond and living through the events of 2020 again, I would take my chances with the gator.  As we finish our current orbit around the Sun, we have experienced 365 days, 5 hours, 59 minutes and 16 seconds that felt like a Martian year.  

McLean, Va., December 1, 2020 – Intelsat today completed its acquisition of the Commercial Aviation business of Gogo, creating the world’s leading provider of inflight broadband connectivity to the commercial aviation industry.

New York City, NY, December 1, 2020--When the first people from planet Earth went into space in the 1960s, it was the thrill of a lifetime.  But we didn’t stay there long.

Ottawa, Canada, November 24, 2020–Telesat Canada announced today that it has entered into an agreement with Loral Space & Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: LORL) (Loral) and Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments) pursuant to which Telesat Canada and Loral will become subsidiaries of Telesat Corporation (Telesat), a new publicly traded Canadian incorporated and controlled company.  

London, UK, November 20, 2020--OneWeb, the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) broadband satellite communications company, announces its emergence from U.S. Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and achievement of all relevant regulatory approvals. A consortium of UK Government (through the UK Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy) and Bharti Global, has invested US $1 Billion of new equity to offer broadband connectivity services, via a constellation of 650 LEO satellites.

Singapore, November 17, 2020 – ST Engineering today announced that effective January 1, 2021, the company will be reorganized as Commercial and Defence & Public Security clusters, replacing the sector-structure of Aerospace, Electronics, Land Systems and Marine.

Petah Tikva, Israel, Nov. 10, 2020--Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. (NASDAQ, TASE: GILT),  today reported its results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2020. Revenues were US$ 37.3 million; compared to US$ 63.4 million in Q3 2019 and similar to that of the previous quarter.   GAAP operating loss was US$ 10.9 million compared to operating income of US$ 7.0 million in Q3 2019 and an operating loss of US$ 3.5 million in the previous quarter. The GAAP operating loss in the quarter includes $8.2 million in expenses related to the Comtech merger and litigation and their effects.

by Robert Bell

New York City, November 8, 2020--It’s not often in a technology business that billions in investment and revenue depend on one of the humblest components of the tech system. But that’s certainly the case for the existing MEO and fast-emerging LEO markets.  Those billions have gone into building spacecraft and launching them, gaining regulatory approvals and landing rights, and developing the complex systems to manage orbital paths and device handoffs.  With those items under control, the entire business proposition has come to rest on the development of a low-cost, high-performance antenna able to acquire and hand off multiple satellites passing overhead.  

New York City, NY, November 6, 2020--It’s the moment you dread. You reach into your pocket or handbag – and your phone isn’t there. A flash of panic runs through you. Where is it? Lost? Stolen? You rush online and use the “find my phone” feature to see where it is. And there it is at the restaurant where you left it last night.