HDTV and Internet Driving Demand For Satellite - By: Paddy Chang

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HDTV SpotBeams used by DirecTV and DISH Network (Ka-band) are often narrower in focus than the Ku band SpotBeams used for Standard Definition TV. If you live more than 50 miles from the signal center in a populated region, it is possible that you will not be able to receive the HDTV SpotBeam. DirecTV and DISH Network have the technical capability of transmitting a broad SpotBeam signal, especially since the newer Satellites can operate at a higher power. It makes good business sense for them to maximize coverage, but there are tradeoffs.
In a rural state like New Mexico, it makes sense to have the SpotBeam cover a 200-mile radius, because that enables more subscribers which results into more revenue. In New England it sometimes makes sense to focus the signal more narrowly, since the SpotBeams are more densely packed together. However, since different frequencies are used for adjacent SpotBeams, overlap usually can be managed.
SpotBeam Satellites and Two-Way Communications
According to Northern Sky Research, there are 15 million U.S. households without access to broadband Internet service. SpotBeam satellites operated by WildBlue and Telesat have already reached over 300,000 Internet subscribers since their launch in 2005.
One advantage of Ka band is that it requires a smaller dish to offer very good performance. Ka band using SpotBeams is more efficient than a traditional C or Ku band satellites (the technology used by the other communication satellite systems). The service is able to deliver significant improvements in performance. A Ka band satellite can provide as much as an 8X increase in capacity over Ku band satellites. The technology can provide upload speeds as fast as 16 Mbps and download speed as fast as 30 Mbps. Three Ka band satellites with SpotBeam technology are already in service in North America: Telesat Canada's Anik F2, WildBlue Communications Wildblue 1, and Hughes Network Systems SPACEWAY 3.
ViaSat-1 and Ka-Sat: Satellite Communications on Steroids
A fourth North American satellite, ViaSat-1 (another Telesat Canada satellite) is planned for launch in 2011. This system is a very advanced Ka-band broadband satellite ordered by ViaSat. The amount of bandwidth enabled by ViaSat-1, equipped with ViaSat's "SurfBeam" networking system, is unparalleled. Total throughput is designed to be over 100 Gigabits per second, which is more capacity than the current North American fleet of two-way Ka, C and Ku band combined capacity. In 2010, Ka-Sat will launch a satellite to provide similar service in Europe.
HDTV signals require 4-5 times as much bandwidth for transmission as standard definition signals, even with sophisticated MPEG-4 encoding. In addition, our Internet communications bandwidth requirements continue to grow at about 50% annually. Keeping up with the demand will require a smorgasbord of options, and Satellite SpotBeams (Ka band), will be very important in the mix.
About the Author: Brian Bradshaw is a Certified Technical Specialist (InfoComm CTS). Areas of expertise include Video, Audio, Computation, HDTV, Satellite Systems, and Communications. He has a communications technology business in Plano, Texas (Dallas). More information can be found at his Website: http://top-liveinternet-tv.com/

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