Satcom Africa Highlight Opportunities in the African Satellite Market
by Virgil Labrador, Editor-in-Chief
Johannesburg, South Africa, June 3, 2011—The 14th edition of the Satcom Africa Conference and Exhibition held in Johannesburg from May 31-June 2 was a unique opportunity to highlight the potentials of the African satellite market. Over 60 companies from all over the world exhibited at the show, which was co-located with the TV Show Africa this year. A distinguished lineup of speakers representing the world’s leading satellite companies took turns in extolling the opportunities and potentials of the African market for satellite services.
The importance of the African satellite market to satellite operators were evident in the panel discussions which saw one panel having representatives from eleven (11) satellite operators! Speakers basically portrayed a largely developed market in Africa for cellular backhaul, Direct-to-Home (DTH), cable TV distribution and VSATs. There is also a unique opportunity for satellite companies in the analog to digital transition being implemented in many countries in Africa, which has been encouraged by the International Telecommunications Union’s (ITU) recommendation that African countries effect the transition to digital broadcasting by 2015.
Christof Limmer, Senior Manager of Market Development of SES said that "satellites were uniquely suited to facilitte the rollout of digital services in Africa." He said that satellite technology can effect digital migration at a faster rate and at a much lower cost than terrestrial networks.
The conference also identified key issues and challenges in the African market for satellite companies. The main concern with 54 African countries with diverse regulatory regimes is the “need for regulatory framework that encourages investment in the telecommunications sector,” according to Bashir Gwando a senior official of the Nigerian Communications Commission, who spoke at the regulatory panel at the conference.
The issue of fiber companies which have been laying out vital infrastructure in key African cities was the subject of a pre-conference workshop organized by the GVF. The consensus was that satellite technology can complement the fiber network and will play an important role in future hybrid networks in the region.
The African continent, which covers an area larger than China, India and the US combined, is served mainly by satellite companies from outside the region. There are only a handful of Africa-based satellite operators, the most developed of which is Egypt-based Nilesat with four satellites operating in the region. The other operators have been plagued with failed launches such as Nigcomsat from Nigeria, the largest country in Africa in terms of population with some 150 million. The company is planning to replace its failed Nigcomsat-1 satellite with Nigcomsat-1R in the fourth quarter of 2011. Mauritius-based operator RascomStar-QAF successfully launched RASCOM-QAF1R satellite in August 2010 after the failure of its previous RASCOM-QAF1 launched in 2007. And just recently, the much-touted New Dawn Satellite—a joint-venture between Intelsat and South Africa-based Convergence partners, suffered an anomaly after its launch in April which rendered all its C-Band transponders inoperable.
With little domestic competition, Africa has been a fertile ground for foreign operators including those from Asia, who are facing stiff competition in their home markets. However, Asia Broadcast Satellite‘s CEO Tom Choi gave probably one of the most well-received presentations at the conference when he put forth a bold proposal to create a fourth ITU region specifically focused on Africa. Choi pointed out that in the current ITU scheme of allocating orbital slots which divided the world into three regions, 90 percent of the slots covering Africa are controlled by companies from outside the region.
Satcom Africa also featured the third annual Star Awards given in eight categories for excellence in the African satellite markets. Service provider iWay Africa got three awards for "VSAT Operator of the Year," "Best Skills Developer of the Year" and its CEO Job Ndege got "Africa Personality of the Year." Gateway Communciations got three awards,namely "First Class Customer Service," "Best Satellite Service Provider of the Year" and "GSM Backhaul Operator of the Year." Intersat Africa won the award for "Innovative Application of Satellite Technology" while Top TV won the "Best Satellite Broadcast Provider of the Year."
