The GEO… MEO… LEO Themes of a Brave New Satellite World in GVF-EMP London ‘HTS Roundtable 2018’

London, UK, , Nov. 1, 2018 — The latest program in the GVF-EMP Partnership portfolio, the HTS Roundtable 2018 - GEOs… MEOs… LEOs: Enabling a Brave New World, has been released. The program, which will offer an in-depth exploration of the drivers and trends behind the continuing massive growth potential in the market for satellite-based broadband solutions, and which is supported by – Comtech EF Data, Hughes, and Newtec – and Guest Sponsors – SES Networks, C-COM Satellite Systems and Integrasys – will take place at London’s Strand Palace Hotel on 4th December 2018, the day following the Society of Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) Better Satellite World Awards dinner.

This year the audience of pre-registered HTS Roundtable attendees, in addition to the industry’s key players, features several organizations and representatives of academia and agencies wholly new to the annual event.  A complete list of registered attending organizations can be found on the event home-page, link above.  This list is updated constantly.

“The Roundtable this year,” said Martin Jarrold, chief of International Program Development with GVF and chair of the GVF-EMP Portfolio series, “will begin with a brief introduction from GVF’s new secretary general, David Meltzer, who took-up his post at the end of August this year; his remarks being followed by an opening Backdrop Presentation given by Stéphane Chenard, senior analyst with Euroconsult, giving an overview of the changing dynamics of satellite’s expanding markets, enhanced services, and evolving technologies.”

Continuing with four moderator-led sessions, which will combine brief introductory remarks from each of a panel of speakers and Q&A-based interaction with the Roundtable audience, the program will conclude around 1730 GMT (5.30 pm) when GVF then turns to the business of its Annual General Assembly and election of five of the seven positions on its board of directors involving a ballot of the Forum’s Full Members.

Opening the First Roundtable Session – ‘The Operators… New Focus & New Orbits’ – moderator Michael Pollack, founder & CEO of the Traville Group, will introduce panelists Simon Gatty Saunt, vice president, Sales, EMEA Fixed-Data, SES Networks; Rob de Poorter, head of Sales, Broadband Services, ArabSat; Gordon Grant, manager, International Sales Engineering, Telesat; Richard Wyrwas, principal engineer, Government Services, ViaSat; and Ronald van der Breggen, chief commercial officer, LeoSat.

Paul Stahl, executive director of EMP commented, “The group of experts from the evolving satellite operator ecosystem will not only focus on their respective organizations’ approach to a future operator market within which the GEOs, MEOs, and mega-LEOs will be either directly competitive or collaborative and complimentary, but also examine the implications of forecast growth in HTS orbital resources, capacity pricing trends, latency differences as a potential competitive divide, the Cloud and IoT markets, and trend towards competition down the value chain.”

Betty Bonnardel, CEO of AB5 Consulting, and chair of the UK’s chapter of the Society of Satellite Professionals International, will moderate Roundtable Session 2, having the evening before hosted the SSPI’s Better Satellite World Awards which were established to give recognition to companies and disruptive innovators that leverage the characteristics of an evolving satellite ecosystem to bring global change. GVF is an Award joint-winner in 2018, and also achieved the SSPI International Award in 2016.

The panel of the Roundtable Second Session – ‘The VARs… New Challenges in an HTS World’ – will feature Michael Pollack of Traville Group who returns to the dialogue arena as a panelist joining Jack Beuchler, CTO, Quika; Yair Maor, senior director, Sales Europe, Gilat Satellite Networks; Sebastien Couvet, EMEA sales manager, Integrasys; and Jo de Loor, market director, Multiservice HTS & Enterprise, Newtec. Discussion will encompass the transformation of the satellite broadband value proposition and the changing satellite Internet paradigm, as well as how the Cloud and the Internet of Things are bringing new opportunities to the Value Added Reseller proposition, and so evolving new dynamic markets including in the mobile market.

The Evolving Dynamics of the Ground Segment in the Growing HTS Environment will comprise the theme of Roundtable Session 3. Moderated by Anver Anderson, CEO, Anver Consulting, the session will cover increasing levels of terminal deployment and the consequently changing dynamics of satellite interference, together with facets of trends in terminal cost and market scales, related to antenna size and form factors, and the technology shift from parabolic to flat panel/phased array. Also included here will be current developments in optical quantum communications in regard to enhanced cyber security.

Andy Lucas, senior vice president, Operator Vertical, Comtech EF Data; John Finney, founder, Isotropic Systems; Mark Lambert, vice president, Business Development, Kratos; Ross J. Donaldson, Royal Academy of Engineering Research Fellow, Heriot-Watt University Institute of Photonics & Quantum Sciences; and Craig Bowley, director of sales, Europe, VT iDirect will make up the panel.

The program concludes with Roundtable Session 4: ‘Mobility, Mobility, Mobility’ with Martin Jarrold moderating discussion between Jags Burhm, Senior Vice President, Global Aero Mobility, Eutelsat; Javier Alexander Santos Wybenga, business development engineer, Inster; Dan Rooney, director, Maritime LoB, EMEA & Russia, Iridium; and Deepukrishnan Pillai, senior analyst, Strategy & Market Intelligence, SES. Discussion points to be raised here include what’s next for HTS and mobility on land, on sea, and in the air, and in trunking and backhaul servicing satellite integration in the 5G mobile world, but not forgetting enterprise VSAT, government and military, and expansion in broadband, video, and other consumer applications.

For more information go to : https://www.uk-emp.co.uk/current-events/hts-roundtable-2018/