BROADBAND ON THE MOVE
Air, land and sea: new horizons for broadband deliverys

Staying connected seemingly has its limitations - until recently there’s been virtually no way to log on if you’re a mile high in the sky, cruising the ocean, or hurtling down a track. That’s now changing, with Eutelsat a key partner in developing solutions that will keep us in touch and entertained, whether we travel by train, boat or plane.

For 25 years, Mobile Satellite Services (MSS) have largely relied upon L-band frequencies, leaving Ku-band frequencies to principally serve land-masses. But with the rising demand for broadband, the scarcity of L-band frequencies is a structural limit to the scalability of such services.

The recent evolution in the market demand for ubiquitous broadband services, with service quality comparable to those today available via ADSL or fibre networks, has generated a new business opportunity for satellite operators and satellite service providers.

Consequently, market offers have appeared, starting from regional maritime services in Ku-band, evolving to global broadband services for aeronautical, rail and shipping companies.

Commercial opportunities
Eutelsat is currently involved in a number of commercial and pre-commercial scenarios for this new wave of in-transit MSS. Find out about how we are helping Grandi Navi Veloci, a leading company in passenger and goods transport throughout the Mediterranean, to extend GSM telephony and broadband services to passengers and crew at sea. Likewise, our broadband subsidiary, Skylogic, is working with Arinc, a leader in aviation communications, to help provide VoIP and Internet access to business jets.

In the UK, QinetiQ Rail has achieved a major milestone in the development of wireless technology by demonstrating a multi-bearer wireless Internet system on a fully operational Virgin Trains ‘Pendolini’ train – with Eutelsat providing the satellite capacity to enable Internet access. By combining multiple WAN technologies including bi-directional satellite and WiMAX, a number of technical firsts have been achieved, including the first UK installation of a bi-directional satellite communications system on a fully operational train.

This is clearly an evolutionary process that in time will become a revolution in how we access the benefits of broadband when traveling from one place to another.