VSAT Industry woes continue

Caught in a maze of policy issues, dependence on government departments and severe capacity under utilization, the VSAT industry in India presents a hazy picture. Burdened by policy hurdles and the onslaught of newer connectivity technologies, the VSAT industry is under severe strain to get its act together and secure its place in the emerging competitive marketplace for corporate networking.

The VSAT industry's main demand of an Open Sky Policy has been pending clearance with the government for some time now with little indications of an early resolution. Unlike ISPs and broadcasters who can negotiate directly with foreign satellite companies for transponders, the Indian VSAT providers are dependent on the space department for negotiations and clearances thereby undermining their competitiveness.

To compound matters, newer generation IP VPN technologies are fast becoming a more attractive choice for corporates looking for secure, flexibile, highscalability networking to connect branch offices, remote sites and business partners.

Another significant problem facing the VSAT industry is speed. Despite the recommendation of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), that VSATs be allowed to transmit data at 2Mbps, the DoT has not approved it so far. With corporates moving to converged voice, data and video transmission across their networks, speed and bandwidth issues become critical.