Satellite broadband will only supplement fibre and mobile

Despite recent announcements from O3B and BT that promise to close the digital divide using the satellite

Last Monday, Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt reiterated the government’s plans to support the universal rollout of superfast broadband by 2015.

He explained that the government would make £830m available, and that no single technology would be suitable for all circumstances - citing a necessary mix of fixed, wireless and satellite technology.

There has been a heightened focus on both fixed and wireless broadband developments in recent months, and it is generally considered that these technologies will shape the future of Digital Britain.

However, the profile of satellite broadband was raised at the end of last month, with two major companies investing in the idea.

BT has signed a £1.2m deal with Avanti Communications to provide broadband to Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly via its HYLAS 1 satellite, and Google has backed a $1.2bn (£790m) O3b Networks project to provide internet connectivity to developing markets.

With O3b claiming that satellite broadband will provide 70 per cent of the world’s population with access to fibre quality broadband, it raises questions about the extend to which this technology could be incorporated into the future of our infrastructure?

“What we need is a patchwork quilt across the UK,” says Rob Bamforth, industry analyst for Quocirca. “There isn’t a single solution that fits all.

In theory you could put fibre in every area, but in reality the cost is a significant barrier. This is where satellite can play a large part, as it is far cheaper than trenching,” he added.

However, broadband satellite technology isn’t new. The UK might be starting to adopt it, but elsewhere it is already in use.

“Satellite broadband is used across Western Europe,” says Fernando Elizalde, industry analyst for Gartner.

“In fact, Germany is the only country I can think of that is using LTE networks (4G) to fill rural black spots as opposed to satellite”.

“Our experience in the US is that take-up is increasing rapidly,” agrees Chris Britton, Managing Director of satellite broadband services company Hughes Europe.

“There are already over one million high speed broadband subscribers in total in the US”.

This may be the case, but it seems that satellite broadband has not experienced widespread adoption in the UK for good reason.

There is general consensus amongst industry experts that the technology has its place, but it is not sufficient to provide communities nationwide.

“The technology isn’t bad; the satellites that have been put up can achieve decent speeds of about 10Mbps. However, the downside is that there tends to be very low usage allowances.

The marketing has been very clever, and users need to be aware of the small print,” say Michael Philpott, industry analyst for Ovum.

“I think satellite broadband only really offers the final piece in the puzzle in terms of when all the other possible options fail, it can provide the final piece. I really don’t see it going beyond that,” he added.

Bamforth points to further problems involved with transferring data to satellites, and suggests the geography of the UK isn’t best suited for adoption.

“The return path from a satellite is slow – so receiving information is ok, but uploading data can become an issue.

"You are sending signals at the speed of light, but those signals are travelling a serious distance. There is a latency issue that creates a delay,” says Bamforth.

“There would also be a problem for the North of England. These satellites are geostationary and do not orbit, so the line of sight tends to be better the closer you are to the equator. The further north you go, the more problems there are."

With these problems limiting the scope of satellite uptake in the UK, it is unsurprising that Powernet, the oldest independent ISP in the UK, believe it will simply provide consumers with an alternative.

“This technology has been around for some time, and we have used it since 1996. But it does have serious faults,” said Tony Tugulu, Chief Executive and Founder at Powernet.

“Providers will say these aren’t an issue, but they are. Our clients tell us they see it as a secondary connection, and that is it. An alternative to fixed or wireless, only when it is necessary,” he added.

“It has its place. It wouldn’t be suitable for a design agency needing high bandwidth superfast broadband. Some enterprises do use it, but again they see it as a back up and only use it when their primary connection fails”.

Philpott also highlights the fact that as technology evolves, and more IT is moved into the cloud, the problems with satellite become more pressing.

“Companies that have moved their services and applications into the cloud expect to be able to access them in an instant,” said Philpott.

“However, the delay that you can experience with broadband via satellite would make the cloud seem less appealing. This could be a serious problem going forward”.