
From the West Coast, you can see the future
By Simen K. Frostad
Sometimes, you look back over a year, and you recall a number of things that seemed important or influential for your business and that would shape the coming years. And sometimes, you look back and realise that there was just one event that really made a difference to how you see your future.
For several years now, a very good friend of mine had been trying to induce me to attend the Satellite Innovation Symposium. For one reason or another, I'd always declined, though this year he was particularly persuasive - and so it was that I found myself in Mountain View, California, in the first half of October.
Before I continue, though, I should point out that satellite operators have, historically, been great customers of Bridge Technologies. Our monitoring and analysis solutions are widely deployed within their networks, in headends. But, over time, as headends have become both larger and fewer, we've seen a shift in the amount of business from those operators. Inevitably, we at Bridge lost track to a certain extent of what was going on in the satellite industry.
So to say that the Satellite Innovation Symposium was a revelation would perhaps be something of an understatement. It was pretty much an epiphany. There I was, among the good and great of the satellite industry, the majority of those present were C-level executives, from all parts of the satellite ecosystem - and the excitement and enthusiasm in the room were almost tangible.
Sheer Size
One of the things that particularly caught my attention was the sheer size of the industry. It's worth around $300 billion a year. By any standards, that's huge. No less interesting was that, of that $300 billion, only around $6 billion/year is spent on launches - which, to the outsider, is the most visible part of what the industry does. Approximately $130 billion is spent each year on the ground infrastructure that supports what's up in the air.
The other thing that particularly caught my attention is that this is an industry that is clearly in investment mode. Why the investment? Because, this is an industry that sees itself as fulfilling a new role in the future.
I was reminded that, at IBC 2017, I'd been somewhat aware of these stirrings in the industry. At IBC 2018, those stirrings had become even more visible, with at least one major operator talking about his company's need to reinvent itself - not thinking of itself as a satellite company, but as a communications company. Another talked about its ambition to become the Swiss Army knife of transmission.
I also heard one of those acronyms that the industry loves: ATAWADAC anytime, anywhere, any device, any content. That's defining the direction in which we're heading. Not only will OTT consumption overtake traditional content consumption within a couple of years but, because content is now more readily available, we're consuming more of it - and that's especially true for live events, with their unique demands in terms of peak loading, minimal latency and so on.
Innate strengths
And, judging by the mood at the symposium, that's music to the ears of satellite operators. It seemed clear to me that being instrumental - the preferred choice, in fact in delivering media is where the industry sees itself. The future will leverage the innate strength and competitive advantage that satellite networks enjoy in that they can truly offer wide area distribution in a way that traditional telcos can't. I also sensed a real appetite among those I spoke to for a future where satellite is only part of a solution that will get content and data to where it's needed - but a vital part - using whatever network technology is appropriate. I found the concept of a space-based network distribution company springs to mind.
And, if you add content distribution to the explosion in demand for network capacity when the IoT moves from its current nascent stage to becoming part of the fabric of everyday life - it's hard to be anything other than hugely positive about the satellite industry's future.
The reason that the Satellite Innovation Symposium left me as enthused and excited as the delegates obviously were is that, if I'm reading the runes correctly, the satellite industry has become extremely significant to us at Bridge Technologies - again. I'm sensing there will be a huge expansion in their networks - and with that expansion will come the need for the in-depth monitoring and analysis capabilities on which we've built our business.
Enthused
Our Satellite and IP probes are being widely deployed by customers around the world, with many broadcasters enthused by their unique capabilities that help them ensure optimum deliver of content from source to destination. We ve even had opportunities to specifically target other niche areas such as the offshore Maritime segment with VSAT carrier quality monitoring.
So: not so much a look backward at 2018 but more a look forward to 2019 - a year in which we're going to be fascinated to watch the satellite industry position itself as the network provider of choice for pretty much any organisation looking to move any kind of data. And: we at Bridge look forward to becoming their monitoring and analytics provider of choice.
With hindsight, I think that being at the Satellite Innovation Symposium was one of the most significant events of 2018 for me. It was a real eye-opener so far as the future of our industry is concerned. I'm so glad I finally accepted that invitation.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
09/10/2026
September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026
New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
The An Evening with Emerson, Lake and Palmer tour brings one of rock's most iconic bands back to the stage. These performances seamlessly blend live foota...
30/09/2026
Schibsted Media, one of Norways largest and most influential digital media publishers and content producers, has invested in mixers and digital signal processor...
30/09/2026
Big Blue Marble announces the addition of live multiview channels to Cloud Video Kit, its broadcast-grade video processing platform. The feature is powered by A...
30/09/2026
Leading video software provider Synamedia today announced that Telekom Slovenije, Slovenia's largest provider of telecommunications and TV services, is open...
30/09/2026
PODCAST EXPO 2026 Recorded Using Blackmagic Design Workflow
Brie Clayton September 29, 2026
0 Comments
Conference featuring 24 sessions over two days ...
30/09/2026
IBC2026 Show Report
David Kirk September 29, 2026
0 Comments
The International Broadcasting Convention has long been Europe's equivalent of the US...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
Mavis has launched Mavis Camera 8.2, the latest release of its professional camera app for the iPhone and iPad. This update brings support for iPhone 18 Pro and...
30/09/2026
How to Shop Well Now starts Monday at 9.35pm
on RT One and RT Player
On the...
30/09/2026
Building on nearly a decade of co-engineering, CoreWeave has built NVIDIA compute, networking and software into a cloud purpose-built for AI that's still re...
29/09/2026
Oak View Group (OVG) has announced Cisco as an Official Technology Partner, with plans to standardize infrastructure across its venue network on Cisco solutions...
29/09/2026
SportsNet Pittsburgh (SNP) won three honors at the 2026 Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards.
Program awards went to Bucs BP in the Sports Program Live category (produced ...
29/09/2026
The Professional Women's Hockey League has announced home openers for all 12 teams for the 2026-27 season, along with a broadcast partnership with CBC under...
29/09/2026
Manifold technologies has been recognized as a contributor to the Media eXchange...
29/09/2026
FuboTV has announced My Local Sports, allowing subscribers in select markets to add their local regional sports network (RSN) as an add-on to a Fubo Sports subs...
29/09/2026
Asian News International (ANI), a wire agency and video news provider based in India, has deployed Grass Valley's AMPP Media Operating System and Framelight...
29/09/2026
South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) has deployed Ikegami UHK-X600 cameras as part of an upgrade to IP-based production infrastructure. The deployment ...
29/09/2026
REMI, REMCO models will drive the bulk of the broadcaster's NHL productions ...
29/09/2026
Three years in, the facility is supporting more centralized race production, com...
29/09/2026
NBC, Peacock, and NBSN are carrying all four Wild Card series with a production ...
29/09/2026
19 Nonfiction Projects Across All Stages of Production to Receive More Than $1 million in Support as Documentary Film Program Approaches 25th Anniversary
LOS ...
29/09/2026
Two new plug-ins launch alongside updated bundles
Zynaptiq have just announced the launch of two new plug-ins, alongside new and improved versions of two of...
29/09/2026
All-in-one bus processor revealed
Wes Audio's ng product range has come a long way since it was first introduced, and now includes a tasty selection of ...
29/09/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Ikegami announces that the South African Broadcasting Corporation, SABC, has chosen Ikegami UHK-X600 camera systems as part of an advance to IP-based operation ...
29/09/2026
Blendkit Offers 20% Discount to Celebrate Crossing 150K Asset Milestone
Brie Clayton September 29, 2026
0 Comments
Blendkit, the largest 3D asset libr...
29/09/2026
Interactive streaming specialist Ease Live supported more than 76.5 million fan sessions across three major European media operators during this summers FIFA Wo...
29/09/2026
Ease Live has added support for VAST (Video Ad Serving Template) to its graphical overlay technology, opening up new ways for broadcasters, streamers and rights...
29/09/2026
Rise AV has announced the launch of the inaugural Rise AV Awards, a new global awards programme celebrating the women, advocates and organisations across the AV...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Clear-Com announced that First Baptist Nashville has upgraded its production communications with a Clear-Com intercom solution as part of a comprehensive sanct...
29/09/2026
Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K Captured Action Shots for Sketch
Brie Clayton September 28, 2026
0 Comments
Camera's portable design and dynamic range...
29/09/2026
Kean Production Services Deploys AJA ColorBox to Deliver Consistent, Accurate Co...