MWEB Business to deliver VSAT service in rural Africa

MWEB Business has launched a powerful internet by satellite service which aims to bring broadband connectivity in rural South Africa, bridging this hard-to-reach locations to the well-connected urban regions. The massive broadband connectivity project will deliver wireless services in far-flung regions which have been cut off from 3G, ADSL, fibre or even fixed-wireless services or are not serviced by electricity.

According to MWEB’s General Manager Andre Joubert, the new VSAT service will deliver Internet to farmers, those involved in mining and construction industries, as well as organizations requiring remote connectivity for business continuity. The MWEB satellite broadband will also provide telephone services aside from the region’s data requirements, and will connect rural offices to headquarters located in cities. MWEB said they’re looking forward to sponsor schools in remote regions looking for satellite connectivity solutions.

The company also explained that the VSAT solution can also work as an alternative to traditional fixed lined Internet access in urban areas. Satellite technology provides blanket coverage and can easily be installed as secondary connectivity. MWEB said that the satellite service will be making use of a teleport facility located in South Africa to minimize latency issues. The satellite broadband technology will offer up to 4Mbps and can be used as basic Internet service or even a complement to existing VPN services.

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An Introduction to VSAT

Watch this short video for an introduction to VSAT. Find out what a VSAT is, how a VSAT works and which customers VSAT's are ideal for.

Learn more about how a VSAT system works: What is VSAT Technology?

Ka band impacts an ever changing VSAT industry

The rise of a new generation of high-capacity satellites, particularly using the Ka band spectrum, has impacted not only the satellite industry, but the smaller related sectors as well. The VSAT industry is right in the middle of these various changes. The new satellite systems are more powerful indeed, but technology and new building methods have made it less expensive. 

Higher bandwidth capacity no longer means spending millions and millions for the technology. This certainly presents new opportunities to the VSAT market. Soon enough, satellite bandwidth will become a commodity and so it will be up to operators to take advantage of the emerging Ka band technology. 

VSAT operators have to be more open to new business strategies. Since ka band will offer flexible payloads and raw capacity, operators should adjust or even transition to a more specialized, focused solutions-based approach. Now the approaches may vary. An operator can gradually incorporate the new Ka band services, or they can improve upon existing strategies - like customer relationship or managed infrastructure - to complement a sudden to Ka band capacity. 

Whatever the path, however, the ka band technology is inevitably going to be faced. With limited orbital slots and frequencies, satellite systems should now carry higher-capacity to "make room" in the crowded skies. Of course, there is the problem of having too much capacity which an operator may have no use for, but it's also  quite certain that the impact of ka band satellites on the VSAT industry includes new entrepreneurial opportunities.