While many are looking to the satellite industry to fill the need for last mile distribution of Internet content, satellites may serve a greater role in the Internet space.

According to Satellite Mediacasting: A New Model For The Internet, a recently released study from Pioneer Consulting, satellites are in a position to offer multicasting services that could help alleviate some of the bandwidth constraints, as well as offer more services to corporate and consumer end users in the coming years.

“Limitations inherent in the traditional Internet infrastructure have heightened the need for new transmission techniques and more efficient bandwidth utilization for streaming multimedia Internet content,” said Christopher Baugh, author of the study. “Traditional one-to-one relationships were adequate for the Internet of the past, one-to-many content distribution services are needed to fuel the next phase of Internet growth.”

It is that one-to-many role that is well suited for the satellite industry.

…The Trend Toward More Bandwidth Intensive Applications

As the Internet continues its evolution, one thing is clear: The next generation of users will use the Internet for more than just simple gathering of data. That data will be combined with audio and video transmissions as well. And while today’s technology for Web casting and streaming media may meet the needs of users, tomorrow’s users will demand higher TV-like quality in their audio and video transmissions, creating a strain on Internet service providers (ISPs).

“As demand grows for bandwidth-intensive content that combines audio, video and data, ISPs, businesses and residential users will turn to solutions such as IP multicasting, which relieves network congestion and reduces overall bandwidth costs,” said

Baugh. “Since satellites are generally the most cost-effective solution for sending multicast/broadcast transmissions to end users, there appears to be an opportunity for satellite operators and service providers to enter this extremely lucrative content distribution market.”

According to the study, the largest Internet demand today is for large, multimedia files that can be updated quickly and frequently at many remote locations. However, terrestrial network capacity and efficiency cannot support multimedia and one-to-many applications.

According to Pioneer research, approximately 30 percent of all Internet traffic is multicast. Additionally, “Cisco estimates that over 50 million ISPs and enterprises currently support IP multicast [and] over 50 percent of Fortune 500 companies are using the technology for some form of content distribution,” said Baugh.

As an example, the report describes a situation where it would take up to 444 hours to send a 100 MB file to 1,000 servers using a typical 512 kbps point-to-point Internet connection. The same file could be delivered to all recipients through multicast techniques in less than 30 minutes.

…The Market Opportunity

To put the market opportunity into perspective, it helps to understand what exactly Pioneer means when is says “mediacasting.” The firm defines mediacasting as point-to- multipoint distribution of Internet, data, audio and video content to both intermediaries and end users. While multicasting makes up the majority of the mediacast sector, broadcasting to all users would also be included in this service.

With that in mind, the study outlines the opportunity for the satellite industry.

“By nature, satellite transmissions are point-to-multipoint communication channels,” said Baugh. “Based on this trait, one application that satellites execute better than any other technology is broadcast; every portion of a satellite’s coverage area receives ubiquitous coverage. Since a GEO satellite can typically cover one fourth to one third of the Earth’s surface, the potential to use satellites for multicast multimedia transport is enormous.”

In fact, Pioneer estimates that the market will grow to more than $14.5 billion by 2005. “This market is only in its infancy and sizable revenues are already being enjoyed,” said Baugh.

Pioneer expects the United States and Western Europe to be the initial leaders in this market, with demand in Asia and Latin America growing strongly during the next two to three years.Satellite Mediacasting: A New Model For The Internet is available from Pioneer Consulting for $4,500. For ordering and other information, please contact Ken Marini, Business Manager, Pioneer Consulting, 125 Cambridgepark Drive, Cambridge, MA 02140. Marini can also be reached via phone at 617/441-3900 or via e-mail at [email protected].