EchoStar Mobile

Last updated
EchoStar Mobile Limited
Company type Subsidiary
Industry Telecommunications
Founded2008;16 years ago (2008)
Headquarters Dublin, Ireland
ProductsMobile Satellite Services
Website echostarmobile.com

EchoStar Mobile Limited, an Irish company with commercial operations headquartered in the United Kingdom and a data centre based in Griesheim, Germany, is a mobile operator that provides connectivity across Europe through a converged satellite and terrestrial network. EchoStar Mobile is a subsidiary of EchoStar Corporation, a provider of satellite communications devices.

Contents

History

EchoStar Mobile Limited was established in 2008 as Solaris Mobile, a joint venture company between SES and Eutelsat Communications to develop and commercialize the first geostationary satellite systems in Europe for broadcasting video, radio and data to in-vehicle receivers and to mobile devices, [1] such as mobile phones, portable media players and PDAs. In January 2014 all stock in Solaris Mobile was acquired by EchoStar Corporation [2] and in March 2015 the company was renamed EchoStar Mobile. [3]

The agreement to set up Solaris Mobile was reached in 2006 with the company formed in 2008. SES and Eutelsat – both successful European satellite operators, providing TV and other services from geostationary satellites to millions of cable and direct-to-home viewers – invested €130m in the venture. The services to be developed included video, radio, multimedia data, interactive services, and voice communications, with the primary aim of delivering mobile television any time, anywhere. Its headquarters is in Dublin, Ireland.

Solaris Mobile's first commercial contract was with Italian media publishing group Class Editori, to launch a digital radio service in Italy. A hybrid satellite/terrestrial network will initially be deployed in Milan, in October 2011 and extended across the country in 2012. Solaris claims that the network will enable Italians to access dozens of new digital radio channels broadcasting music, news, entertainment and sports, in their original format with continuity of reception across the entire country, and that the digital audio signal will be complemented with new visual media services such as programme information and traffic data. [4]

Applications

The EU Telecoms Commissioner, Viviane Reding, has commented, "Mobile satellite services have huge potential: they can enable Europeans to access new communication services, particularly in rural and less populated regions." [5]

Solaris Mobile primarily intends to provide mobile TV and interactive services to handheld and vehicle receivers. For in-vehicle use, the mobile satellite receivers could also double as web browsers providing full Internet access, and deliver interactive services such as online reservations, emergency warnings, or toll payments.

The coverage across Europe will also enable the system to be used for situations when other means of communication are not possible, such as gathering data (traffic, weather, pollution) from moving vehicles, and support for emergency and rescue services in isolated regions, under extreme conditions or when terrestrial networks have been compromised.

To avoid the requirement for mobile phones with S-band reception for the satellite services, Solaris Mobile has developed a 'Pocket Gateway' in conjunction with Finnish company Elekrobit. The Gateway is a compact S-band receiver which decodes DVB-SH transmissions from the Solaris satellite and relays them over WiFi to any compatible handset with a web browser. The Gateway is also planned to be used in vehicles with a roof-mounted antenna for S-band reception with services accessed on passengers' mobile phones. The technology was demonstrated at the GSMA Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in February 2010. [6]

Technology

The Solaris Mobile services use DVB-SH technology to deliver IP based data and media content to handheld and in-vehicle terminals using a hybrid satellite/terrestrial system with satellite transmission serving the whole of Europe and beyond, and terrestrial repeaters for urban and indoor penetration.

The S-band frequencies used (2.00 GHz) are reserved for the exclusive use of satellite and terrestrial mobile services, and sit alongside the UMTS frequencies already in use across Europe for 3G terrestrial mobile phone services, allowing the reuse of existing cellular towers and antennas, and the simple incorporation of Solaris services in mobile handsets.

Handsets equipped with the first DVB-SH chipsets were successfully demonstrated live at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in February 2008. [7]

Solaris was intended to first use the Eutelsat W2A satellite at 10° east, which contains an S-band payload, and was scheduled for launch in early 2009. However, following the successful launch on April 3, 2009, the S-band payload was found to show "an anomaly" which has put in doubt the payload's capability to provide mobile satellite services for Solaris. [8]

Further testing of the satellite was undertaken to establish its future in the Solaris programme. Investigation of S-band payload has confirmed significant non-compliance from its original specifications. On 1 July 2009, Solaris Mobile filed an insurance claim. The technical findings indicate that the company should be able to offer some, but not all of the services it was planning to offer. [9]

Regulatory

On June 30, 2008 the European Parliament and the Council adopted the European's Decision to establish a single selection and authorisation process to ensure a coordinated introduction of mobile satellite services (MSS) in Europe. The selection process was launched in August 2008 and attracted four applications by prospective operators (ICO, Inmarsat, Solaris Mobile, TerreStar). [10] [11]

In May 2009, the European Commission selected two operators, Inmarsat Ventures and Solaris Mobile, giving these operators "the right to use the specific radio frequencies identified in the Commission's decision and the right to operate their respective mobile satellite systems". EU Member States now have to ensure that the two operators have the right to use the specific radio frequencies identified in the commission's decision and the right to operate their respective mobile satellite systems for 18 years from the selection decision. The operators are compelled to start operations within 24 months from the selection decision. [5] [12] [13] [14]

Although the EU's decision was announced days after the apparent failure of the payload intended to serve Solaris, the company remains confident of "its ability to meet the commitments made under the European Commission selection process". [15]

In May 2010, Solaris Mobile announced that following the granting of spectrum by the European Commission, the company had been actively pursuing licenses from European member states and it had just been granted 18-year licences to operate Mobile Satellite Services in France, Sweden and Germany, to add to existing licenses for Finland, Luxembourg, Italy, and Slovenia. [16]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ariane 5</span> European heavy-lift space launch vehicle (1996–2023)

Ariane 5 is a retired European heavy-lift space launch vehicle developed and operated by Arianespace for the European Space Agency (ESA). It was launched from the Centre Spatial Guyanais (CSG) in French Guiana. It was used to deliver payloads into geostationary transfer orbit (GTO), low Earth orbit (LEO) or further into space. The launch vehicle had a streak of 82 consecutive successful launches between 9 April 2003 and 12 December 2017. Since 2014, Ariane 6, a direct successor system, is in development.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DVB</span> Open standard for digital television broadcasting

Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB) is a set of international open standards for digital television. DVB standards are maintained by the DVB Project, an international industry consortium, and are published by a Joint Technical Committee (JTC) of the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI), European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC) and European Broadcasting Union (EBU).

Integrated Services Digital Broadcasting is a Japanese broadcasting standard for digital television (DTV) and digital radio.

The L band is the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) designation for the range of frequencies in the radio spectrum from 1 to 2 gigahertz (GHz). This is at the top end of the ultra high frequency (UHF) band, at the lower end of the microwave range.

The S band is a designation by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for a part of the microwave band of the electromagnetic spectrum covering frequencies from 2 to 4 gigahertz (GHz). Thus it crosses the conventional boundary between the UHF and SHF bands at 3.0 GHz. The S band is used by airport surveillance radar for air traffic control, weather radar, surface ship radar, and some communications satellites, especially those satellites used by NASA to communicate with the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station. The 10 cm radar short-band ranges roughly from 1.55 to 5.2 GHz. The S band also contains the 2.4–2.483 GHz ISM band, widely used for low power unlicensed microwave devices such as cordless phones, wireless headphones (Bluetooth), wireless networking (WiFi), garage door openers, keyless vehicle locks, baby monitors as well as for medical diathermy machines and microwave ovens. India's regional satellite navigation network (IRNSS) broadcasts on 2.483778 to 2.500278 GHz.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Satellite Internet access</span> Satellite-provided Internet

Satellite Internet access is Internet access provided through communication satellites; if it can sustain high speeds, it is termed satellite broadband. Modern consumer grade satellite Internet service is typically provided to individual users through geostationary satellites that can offer relatively high data speeds, with newer satellites using Ku band to achieve downstream data speeds up to 506 Mbit/s. In addition, new satellite internet constellations are being developed in low-earth orbit to enable low-latency internet access from space.

Eutelsat S.A. is a French satellite operator. Providing coverage over the entire European continent, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and the Americas, it is the world's third-largest satellite operator in terms of revenues.

EUMETCast is a method of disseminating various meteorological data operated by the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT). The main purpose is the dissemination of EUMETSAT's own data, but various data from other providers are broadcast as well. EUMETCast is a contribution to GEONETCast and IGDDS and provides data for GEOSS and GMES.

DVB-H is one of three prevalent mobile TV formats. It is a technical specification for bringing broadcast services to mobile handsets. DVB-H was formally adopted as ETSI standard EN 302 304 in November 2004. The DVB-H specification can be downloaded from the official DVB-H website. From March 2008, DVB-H is officially endorsed by the European Union as the "preferred technology for terrestrial mobile broadcasting". The major competitors of this technology are Qualcomm's MediaFLO system, the 3G cellular system based MBMS mobile-TV standard, and the ATSC-M/H format in the U.S. DVB-SH now and DVB-NGH in the future are possible enhancements to DVB-H, providing improved spectral efficiency and better modulation flexibility. DVB-H has been a commercial failure, and the service is no longer on-air. Ukraine was the last country with a nationwide broadcast in DVB-H, which began transitioning to DVB-T2 during 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SES S.A.</span> Communications satellite owner and operator

SES S.A. is a Luxembourgish satellite telecommunications network provider supplying video and data connectivity worldwide to broadcasters, content and internet service providers, mobile and fixed network operators, governments and institutions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inmarsat</span> British satellite communications company

Inmarsat is a British satellite telecommunications company, offering global mobile services. It provides telephone and data services to users worldwide, via portable or mobile terminals which communicate with ground stations through fifteen geostationary telecommunications satellites.

DVB-SH is a physical layer standard for delivering IP based media content and data to handheld terminals such as mobile phones or PDAs, based on a hybrid satellite/terrestrial downlink and for example a GPRS uplink. The DVB Project published the DVB-SH standard in February 2007.

ETSI Satellite Digital Radio describes a standard of satellite digital radio. It is an activity of the European standardisation organisation ETSI.

China Mobile Multimedia Broadcasting (CMMB) is a mobile television and multimedia standard developed and specified in China by the State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television (SARFT). It is based on the Satellite and Terrestrial Interactive Multiservice Infrastructure (STiMi), developed by TiMiTech, a company formed by the Chinese Academy of Broadcasting Science. Announced in October 2006, it has been described as being similar to Europe's DVB-SH standard for digital video broadcast from both satellites and terrestrial repeaters to handheld devices.

SES Broadband is a two-way satellite broadband Internet service available across Europe, which launched in March 2007, and uses the Astra series of geostationary satellites.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tooway</span> Satellite broadband Internet provider

Tooway satellite broadband Internet service available across Europe. The first version of the service was launched in 2007 via two Eutelsat geostationary satellites, Hot Bird 6 and Eurobird 3, respectively at the 13° and 33° East orbital positions.

Eurostar is a satellite bus made by Airbus Defence and Space which has been used for a series of spacecraft providing telecommunications services in geosynchronous orbit (GEO). More than 70 Eurostar satellites have been ordered to date, of which more than 55 have been successfully launched since October 1990 and have proven highly reliable in operational service. In December 2013, the Eurostar satellites accumulated 500 years of successful operations in orbit. The Eurostar spacecraft series is designed for a variety of telecommunications needs including fixed services and broadcast, mobile services, broadband and secured communications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vizada</span> Worldwide satellite communications service

Vizada is a worldwide satellite communications service provider which operates stations that connect satellite communications to terrestrial telecommunications and IP networks. Vizada provides both mobile and fixed satellite telecommunications to markets including merchant shipping, defense and government, fishing and yachting, oil and gas, mining, and non-governmental organizations. The product offer covers maritime, land, and aeronautical services. In 2011, the Vizada Group was acquired by EADS, to be integrated as a subsidiary of Astrium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eutelsat 5 West A</span>

Eutelsat 5 West A, formerly Atlantic Bird 3 was a communications satellite belonging to the operator Eutelsat. Situated at 5° West, it broadcast satellite television, radio and other digital data. Developed for France Telecom it was transferred soon after its launch to the operator Eutelsat. It entered operational service in early September 2002. Its anticipated working life was 15 years. It was decommissioned in January 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">C band (IEEE)</span> Range of radio frequencies from 4 to 8 GHz

The C band is a designation by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in the microwave range of frequencies ranging from 4.0 to 8.0 gigahertz (GHz). However, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission C band proceeding and auction, designated 3.7–4.2 GHz as C band. The C band is used for many satellite communications transmissions, some Wi-Fi devices, some cordless telephones, as well as some radar and weather radar systems.

References

  1. ↑ "Steve Maine Appointed By SES ASTRA And EUTELSAT As CEO Of Joint Venture For Mobile Satellite Services" (Press release). SES ASTRA. February 21, 2008. Retrieved January 26, 2012.
  2. ↑ "Echostar Acquires European Mobile Satellite Services Provider" (Press release). Solaris Mobile. January 6, 2014. Archived from the original on October 29, 2014. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Solaris Mobile is Now EchoStar Mobile" (Press release). EchoStar. March 25, 2015. Retrieved March 27, 2015.
  4. ↑ "SOLARIS MOBILE AND CLASS EDITORI SIGN AGREEMENT TO LAUNCH DIGITAL RADIO SERVICE IN ITALY" (Press release). Solaris Mobile. July 12, 2011. Archived from the original on October 6, 2011. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
  5. 1 2 "European Commission paves the way for European mobile satellite services" (Press release). European Commission. May 14, 2009.
  6. ↑ "Pocket Gateway Device" (Press release). Solaris Mobile. February 10, 2010. Archived from the original on February 20, 2012. Retrieved February 16, 2010.
  7. ↑ Major Players of the DVB-SH Ecosystem Join Forces to Demonstrate Live Mobile TV. Reuters (February 6, 2008). Retrieved on June 1, 2009
  8. ↑ "Statement re Solaris Mobile S-band capacity" (PDF) (Press release). Solaris Mobile. May 14, 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 14, 2015. Retrieved June 1, 2009. SES Statement on Solaris Mobile S-band capacity
  9. ↑ "Solaris Mobile Files Insurance Claim" (PDF) (Press release). Solaris Mobile. July 1, 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 20, 2012. Retrieved July 1, 2009. SES statement: Solaris Mobile Files Insurance Claim
  10. ↑ "Commission boost for mobile satellite services paves the way for EU-wide high speed data communications" (Press release). European Commission. August 22, 2007.
  11. ↑ "New Satellites for Europe: Commission starts selection procedure for operators of pan-European mobile satellite services" (Press release). European Commission. August 7, 2008.
  12. ↑ "Mobile Satellite Services in Europe: Frequently Asked Questions" (Press release). European Commission. May 14, 2009.
  13. ↑ Inmarsat and Solaris win EU spectrum rights Reuters (May 14, 2009). Retrieved July 27, 2009
  14. ↑ Pan-European numbers and services. European Commission Information Society website. Retrieved July 27, 2009
  15. ↑ "Solaris Mobile welcomes the European Commission selection decision for the S-band process" (PDF) (Press release). Solaris Mobile. May 14, 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 8, 2009. Retrieved June 1, 2009.
  16. ↑ "European License Progress" (Press release). Solaris Mobile. May 11, 2010. Archived from the original on March 5, 2012. Retrieved May 21, 2010.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.