CASBAA Satellite Industry Forum 2011
The Annual CASBAA Satellite Industry Forum recently took place in Singapore on 20 June 2011, immediately prior to CommunicAsia 2011. The Forum brought together leading industry heavyweights from around the world to discuss the satellite industry in Asia, focusing on the effects of new technologies, hosted payloads and higher frequency utilisation.
The impressive line-up of market leaders and industry experts included: Dave McGlade, CEO Intelsat, Romain Bausch, President and CEO SES, Nongluck Phinainitisart, President Thaicom, Bill Wade, President and CEO AsiaSat, Paul Brown-Kenyon, CEO MEASAT, Tom Choi, CEO ABS, Cheng Guangren, President APT Satellite and David Ball, CTO NewSat.
Romain Bausch, SES President & CEO, provided many insights into the satellite industry. Bausch highlighted government subsidised fibre as a major threat to satellite, reiterating the importance of satellite companies to work closely with telecommunications providers to ensure they have a thorough understanding of the complementary features and benefits of satellite which can work in conjunction with fibre.
NewSat’s Chief Technology Officer, David Ball, hosted the “Leadership Kick-Off” which openly debated the challenges many satellite operators are facing as well as initiating a lively discussion about possible solutions. The expert panel included:
- Inoue Osamu, Senior EVP, SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation
- Cheng Guangren, President, APT Satellite
- Thomas Choi, CEO, ABS
- Paul Brown-Kenyon, CEO, MEASAT
- Nongluck Phinainitisart, President, Thaicom
- Andrew Wallace, Chief Commercial Officer, Eutelsat
Among the many key challenges discussed, Thomas Choi, ABS CEO, highlighted the need for more cost-effective satellite and launch solutions, such as “off the shelf” satellites, as technology costs within the industry are creeping up. He added that ABS is strategically focusing on markets such as DTH and video distribution, as satellite provides a superior solution compared to markets like consumer broadband, which compete with a range of technologies. Moreover, Andrew Wallace, Eutelsat CCO, underlined the continued growth of HD technology as opposed to 3D technology, which is not growing as expected and is still in its infancy. Also, Dr Nongluck Phinainitisart, Thaicom President, mentioned that the satellite industry can continue to grow as long as everyone works together to increase the size of the available pie.
Click here to view photos from the day.
