ThisMicrowaves & RFarticle is reprinted here with permission.
在富裕的西部（A.K.A.“第一”）世界，我们将我们无处不在的连通性视为理所当然。蜂窝和Wi-Fi覆盖毯我们的家园和办公室。随时随地访问互联网，电子邮件，短信和语音呼叫。
Thus, it can be mind-boggling to learn that, according to a recent market study by research/competitive-intelligence firmFact.MR, nearly four in ten people globally do not have access to the internet. Large portions of the unconnected live in rural areas, where harsh geographic realities can make the establishment of broadband infrastructure very difficult and extremely costly.
This is where broadband satellite communications come into the picture—and in a big way. Fact.MR’s study determined that the satellite internet market is expected to exceed $6 billion by 2031. With high-tech entrepreneurs becoming enmeshed in a privatized space race, these players will spearhead a drive to bring advanced and highly efficient satellite broadband to market.
The enormous gap in internet penetration exists between various countries and economic sectors. Lack of an established customer base in these rural areas of the world compounds the problem. Developing nations and small island nations also suffer with this dearth of connectivity.
By the way, some of the rural areas without reliable high-speed internet access are in the United States of America. An article from earlier this year onAppleInsider.comreveals that broadband penetration and speed falls far short of what the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) would have us believe. In large swaths of the U.S., less than 15% of people use the internet at download speeds of at least 25 Mb/s, which is how the FCC defines high-speed internet.
卫星互联网的美丽是它不需要铺设大型电缆来提供数据。它将使宽带远离未连接或缓慢连接的群众。为此，卫星互联网服务的设置成本比较少，生命周期更长。
Positioning of satellites in lower orbit is mitigating the problem of latency. For instance, satellites that are in orbit at around 600 km from the Earth’s surface have lower latency as compared to those in higher orbits. Starlink broadband services claim to provide latency as low as 20 ms. On the other hand, visibility of satellites with the naked eye due to their placement in lower orbit is a point of concern, with prominent companies working on the same.
Some of the key points from Fact.MR’s study:
- Satellite internet revenue will soar 2.2X from 2021 to 2031, reaching nearly $6 billion by 2031.
- 全球市场收入预计将于2021年的35亿美元。
- Demand for satellite internet will likely grow due to its utilization in the deployment of 5G and IoT technology.
- Residential satellites are likely to increase their share to reach nearly 55% by 2031 as compared to 2020.
为广泛的用户推出卫星互联网服务，例如住宅用途，全级企业，联邦政府等，应采取更多收入。例如，将Telesat与Starlink进行比较，前者的商业模式旨在为只提供服务的服务和B2B客户，而后者旨在为全球各地提供服务。
Starlink has started its beta-version testing and the service will be for commercial purposes. Similarly, the company is in talks with the U.S. Department of Defense for the adoption of its services.
