Internet services enable communication between individuals in the form of sharing information, both text and graphics, and entertainment at a speed. Improved technologies increased the speed by using parallel medium like cable and wireless networks. Satellite Internet technology enabled communication to reach remote locations that were unreachable through other technologies at almost the same speed. Satellite Internet services are of two types. One-way service uses DVB-IP (Digital Video Broadcast- Internet Protocol), which is only for inbound connectivity. IP multicast protocol enables one-to-many-point communication. This is similar to push technologies like TV and radio where the contents are pushed to the users with little interactivity. Hence, one way service is ideally suited for webpage viewing. The downlink speed is at least 500 kbps. Two-way services provide complete broadband services to the users. Two-way service enables high-speed access for both download and upload. The upload speed will always be slower than the download speed. This platform is ideal for SOHOs and small and medium enterprises. Satellite Internet technology provides mobile applications that can be mounted on trucks and ships. Satellite Internet doesnt allow faster access to Virtual Private Networks, as satellite Internet technology cant decrypt packet header of data. Besides emails and web surfing, satellite Internet allows for voice over IP, a service very valuable in remote and mobile locations. In large enterprises, failure of standard broadband access such as cable and DSL could mean financial losses. Hence, satellite Internet acts as a business continuity mechanism. The level of satellite services depend upon the plan provided by the service providers. The scaling up of uploading speed will result in many new services. Latency is a severe constraint in the adoption of this technology. |
