Container cranes, Warrenpoint harbor. Photo: Albert Bridge

[Via Satellite 11-03-2014] Despite significant growth in terrestrial Machine-to-Machine (M2M) and Internet of Everything (IoT) communications, satellite is expected to hold a significant niche, according to NSR. In the research group’s “M2M and IoT via Satellite, 5th Edition” report, revenues are expected to more than double from $1.1 billion in 2013 to more than $2.4 billion by 2023.

Satellite’s advantage over the competition comes from the ability to provide global services with a single point of contact. NSR anticipates satellite will hold this edge for years to come. Citing Asia and Latin America as prime examples where terrestrial networks are well established, satellite in-service unit Calculated Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) is forecasted at 12.6 percent and 9.9 percent respectively.

In the future, the growth of deep analytics for business optimization is predicted to drive users in top verticals such as transportation, cargo and military, to next generation L-band systems and, to a lesser degree, High Throughput Satellite (HTS) systems. NSR predicts double-digit growth in green energy and civil government verticals as well.

“Despite the proliferation of 4G LTE networks and expanded footprints, there is no major game changer foreseen over the forecast period,” said Alan Crisp, NSR analyst and author of the report. “The continued low bandwidth requirements for most of the industry allows narrowband L-band systems to remain dominant for the time being and into the future in the face of terrestrial footprint expansion and increasing available bandwidth.”