Teaming Up WiMAX and Satcom
You’d be excused for believing that WiMAX and satcom don’t play well together.
After all, studies (as well as anecdotes) have shown that WiMAX technology interferes with the reception of satellite transmissions in C-Band:
The trade group says that the results of the testing showed that the WiMAX transmit signal could cause significant problems to a satellite digital signal well in excess of 12 km distance. At the extreme measurement distance, the video program was fully operational with the WiMAX carrier centered on the video carrier. However, the data BER was degraded from a nominal 10-8 to a BER of 10-4. This is an unacceptable quality of service in the digital telecommunications industry….
"The C-band is in many ways the lifeline of the satellite industry and protecting that spectrum from the threat of interference posed by sharing it with Broadband Wireless Access services is of paramount importance," said Robert Ames, SUIRG President. "The tremendous support of the SUIRG member companies and the industry as a whole in making this test a viable platform to aid decision makers at WRC-07 was extremely gratifying. The results of the test are a firm testament to the need for clearly defined spectrum allocation."
That interference has caught the attention of federal officials in the U.S., who worry that WiMAX deployment could interfere with crucial C-Band signals used daily by the Department of Defense and civilian agencies.
Yet in the developing world, WiMAX and Satcom can play nicely together and provide leap-frog technology solutions for bringing the Internet to remote areas.
As we blogged last year, HughesNet in Brazil is combining the long-range wireless solution of WiMAX with Internet Protocol over Satellite (IPoS) to reach the most remote areas of the Amazon basin.
But new solutions bring new competition, and one can get around the C-band interference simply by using the Ku-Band, which Gilat uses extensively.
Those two reasons explain why Gilat recently inked a deal with Airspan Networks, Inc., a major provider of WiMAX broadband wireless access networks:
Broadening its product offering to include WiMAX-based solutions, Gilat will distribute Airspan’s WiMAX solutions globally to its large base of existing customers as well as new customers, leveraging its core competencies including strong global sales, turnkey project delivery and local support capabilities. The new agreement will enable Gilat’s customers to address their broadband wireless access and satellite communications needs through a well integrated ‘one-stop-shop’ solutions provider.
"We are excited to enter into this partnership with Gilat, who has a global reach into the world’s high growth markets and which will allow us to further expand our distribution channels. It’s a win-win situation for both companies and highlights the synergies to be realized between shared customers and similar types of applications. Airspan continues to gain momentum and recognition as a leader in WiMAX in a very competitive market environment," commented Eric Stonestrom, Airspan’s President and CEO.
Not incidentally, Gilat also recently signed Petrobras in Brazil.
