United for Peace of Pierce County, WA - We nonviolently oppose the reliance on unilateral military actions rather than cooperative diplomacy.

Access to broadband via satellite is increasing rapidly, and "[t]wo companies, one in Europe and one in North America, are between them investing more than 500m euros in new-generation satellites capable of delivering two-way broadband to more than 2m extra users," the Financial Times of London reported Tuesday.[1] -- Eutelsat in Europe (a company based in France with a couple dozen satellites that was privatized in 2001 and publicly traded on the Paris bourse in 2005, and with about $1bn in annual revenues holds about 13% of the market) and ViaSat in the U.S. (a company traded on NASDAQ since 1996 and based in Carlsbad, CA, specializing in military communications equipment and now moving into satellite broadband for the first time) plan to launch satellites in 2010 that "will treble global satellite broadband capacity," Ross Tieman said. -- "In developed countries, where even government services increasingly require access by internet, and even the smallest businesses need to be online, this offers an economic lifeline to those in rural areas." ...

After years in the internet access wilderness, the satellite industry is gearing up to offer broadband via satellite that is affordable for home-workers, small businesses, and consumers alike.

Two companies, one in Europe and one in North America, are between them investing more than 500m euros in new-generation satellites capable of delivering two-way broadband to more than 2m extra users.

On the basis of estimates that up to a quarter of "consumer" broadband users also use their connection for business, that will give 500,000 workers located beyond the reach of wired networks online access for the first time.

In developed countries, where even government services increasingly require access by internet, and even the smallest businesses need to be online, this offers an economic lifeline to those in rural areas.

The move by Eutelsat in Europe and ViaSat in the U.S. to send up satellites dedicated to broadband comes amid technology improvements and the market success of improved connections using spare capacity on existing satellites.

According to Patrick French, senior analyst at Massachusetts-based satellite research specialists NSR, U.S. satellite broadband connections surged from 431,000 at the end of 2006 to almost 670,000 at the end of last year.

Hughes Network Systems, a U.S. satellite broadband pioneer, reported 379,900 consumer subscribers on December 31, while WildBlue Communications had an estimated 290,000.

More than 15m households in the U.S. are believed to be beyond the reach of wired DSL (digital subscriber line) internet access, and even by 2010, Eutelsat believes a similar number of Europeans will remain without an affordable alternative to satellite broadband.

The upsurge in U.S. satellite broadband connections has spurred SES-Astra to sign up distributors in seven European countries for its Astra2Connect two-way broadband service, launched last year, and delivered via spare transponders on Ku-band broadcasting satellites.

Eutelsat, meanwhile, has launched a rival service, called Tooway, using spare Ka-band transponders on its Hot Bird 6 satellite and Ku-band on Eurobird 3.

Swisscom has chosen Tooway to fulfill its regulatory obligation to offer a universal service. Eutelsat also reports a strong rise in demand for its D-Star service delivering satellite broadband to businesses and communities, plus installations on aeroplanes, trains, and ferries to provide broadband or mobile phone service for travellers.

Earlier satellite broadband offered nominal download speeds of up to 1 megabit a second, but users had to send their information requests via a landline. Dishes were large. The equipment for D-Star, a two way service for businesses, costs 1,000 euros, and monthly fees can be 200 euros a user.

New technologies, notably SurfBeam developed by ViaSat, enable two-way connections using a dish as small as 67cms, and much higher speeds. In the U.S., Hughes offers download speeds of up to 2mbps, and uploads at 1mbps. Slower packages, with a nominal 700kbps download, cost $60 a month -- closer to the price of DSL.

The new satellites will treble global satellite broadband capacity. Eutelsat's KA-Sat, to be launched in 2010, will have 80 spot-beams and total capacity of 70 gigabits a second. Its U.S. partner, ViaSat, hitherto an equipment company, is launching a 100gbps satellite later the same year.

Giuliano Berretta, Eutelsat's chief executive, says switching to Ka-band allows KA-Sat to carry 80 spot-beams each covering areas 250km across, against country-wide coverage using Ku-band. "A bit will cost us eight times less than in the present system," he says.

Eight terrestrial hubs hooked up to optical fibre will process two-way business and home connections at up to 8mbps. Tariffs will be based on volume of data, as well as speed.

By 2013, Eutelsat hopes to win between 700,000 and 1.5m European users. Meanwhile, mass production should cut the price of equipment, and co-locating the satellite with the Hot Bird European broadcast cluster will enable its satellite TV customers to add a "triple-play" of broadband, TV, and telephone using much of the same kit.

Two-way speeds of up to 8mbps will make satellites competitive on speed and cost with the service many townsfolk get from DSL. And with a potential to deliver 90mbps, it is close to the best today in Japan, Singapore, or the U.K.

But that is what troubles some analysts. "The internet access market is not standing still," says Mr. French.

As speeds rise, so do customer expectations. Max Engel, a satellite and broadband analyst at Frost & Sullivan, says: "My fear is that satellite will end up being a superior form of dial-up." The industry may be underestimating the willingness of telecom companies to continue building wired networks as its costs fall, he says, and wireless technologies are also stalking rural areas, though to little effect so far.

Yet, Mr. Engel reasons that although the number of unconnected households and businesses will fall, the proportion who find they cannot function without broadband will rise.

It sounds like good news for those beyond the digital divide, but a gamble for the providers.