Asia-Pacific Broadcasting (APB) Satellie Special Supplement 2015 | Page 7

Satellite a key delivery platform in Asia-Pacific Satellite C-band spectrum remains the lifeblood of broadcast distribution in Asia-Pacific; at WRC-15 later this year in Geneva, satellite C-band spectrum, together with terrestrial broadcast spectrum, will be considered for mobile services. bands are bedevilled by “rain fade”, stressed John Mederios, chief policy officer at CASBAA. It would be a “disaster”, warned Mederios, if the ITU proceeds to allocate C-band spectrum to the IMT indus- try. He explained: “Adequate spectrum for the satellite communications industry is essential to Asian consum- ers’ ability to receive the thousands of TV streams that make up the Asian pay-TV industry.” The question also remains: Is the claim by mobile operators — that in order to deliver the capacity to meet the growth in demand for data services, more spectrum needs to be available for mobile networks — legitimate? According to a study released last year by Germany’s LS telcom, less than two-thirds of the spectrum that should have been made available for IMT services is licensed, while only less than half of that which could be made available is licenced out. Take the forecast of future demand by the mobile industry with a shaker of salt, was the blunt assessment of Robert Bell, executive director of the World Teleport Association (WTA). “Those [demands] are not real-world conditions,” said Bell. “I would say that, unless misguided regulatory decisions interfere with its ability to deliver services, satellite is the technology of choice for higher-resolution video.” And for that matter, for any services delivered over satellite, with satellite C-band spectrum remaining the lifeblood of broadcast distribution in Asia-Pacific — it is up to Asia-Pacific governments to ensure that this remains so. oUr MarkEts & aPPlIcatIoNs broadcast coNsUMEr & ENtErPrIsE Vsat goVErNMENt & dEfENsE MobIlIty, offshorE & MarItIME cEllUlar backhaUl & trUNkINg www.newtec.eu 2015_APB_MARKETS_187x136mm.indd 1 2/2/15 5:01 PM An Supplement 5