Steve Mehs
08-12-02, 09:24 AM
The next big thing the National Rural Telecommunications Cooperative is ready to dive into is satellite broadband, the organization's president said.
Whether it's investment in platforms or becoming a key distribution play, NRTC President Bob Phillips said the cooperative is ready to become a major player in the developing high-speed product. "We are interested in coming in and driving that industry forward," he said.
"Our core business right now is satellite to home video. Our future is going to be based on satellite broadband."
The NRTC has talked with all companies tied to Ka-Band, outside of EchoStar and Hughes, Phillips said. He didn't provide specifics on those discussions. Today, NRTC sells Ku-Band services from StarBand and DirecWAY from Hughes Network Systems.
Phillips said he looks at today's satellite broadband technology the same way he saw C-Band and the early days of satellite TV. Years ago, satellite TV equipment was expensive, and there were a lot of technical issues with the first systems.
But with the innovations small dish services brought to the business, equipment fell in price, and technology offered consumers more choices.
Spot-beam technology, which will be available with emerging Ka-Band satellite systems, and new protocols in delivering broadband content will make next generation Internet-via-satellite affordable and easy to use, Phillips said. "There have been constant improvements in the way satellites deliver data," he said.
From SkyReport (http://www.skyreport.com) (Used with Permission)
Whether it's investment in platforms or becoming a key distribution play, NRTC President Bob Phillips said the cooperative is ready to become a major player in the developing high-speed product. "We are interested in coming in and driving that industry forward," he said.
"Our core business right now is satellite to home video. Our future is going to be based on satellite broadband."
The NRTC has talked with all companies tied to Ka-Band, outside of EchoStar and Hughes, Phillips said. He didn't provide specifics on those discussions. Today, NRTC sells Ku-Band services from StarBand and DirecWAY from Hughes Network Systems.
Phillips said he looks at today's satellite broadband technology the same way he saw C-Band and the early days of satellite TV. Years ago, satellite TV equipment was expensive, and there were a lot of technical issues with the first systems.
But with the innovations small dish services brought to the business, equipment fell in price, and technology offered consumers more choices.
Spot-beam technology, which will be available with emerging Ka-Band satellite systems, and new protocols in delivering broadband content will make next generation Internet-via-satellite affordable and easy to use, Phillips said. "There have been constant improvements in the way satellites deliver data," he said.
From SkyReport (http://www.skyreport.com) (Used with Permission)