Report: Sat-teleports are thriving
September 30, 2022
By Chris Forrester
The World Teleport Association (WTA) has released a research report that details major shifts in the broadcast distribution market and how intelligent teleport operators have adapted to radical change to sustain and grow their businesses.
The problem for most WTA members is the decline – or at best ‘plateauing’ – of their lucrative DTH businesses. “Satellite delivery of video in industrialised nations continues to give way to broadband streaming,” said executive director Robert Bell.
Bell adds: “DTH remains healthy in markets with limited broadband penetration. That long-term decline shows up clearly in the financial results of satellite operators, but teleport operators are adapting in technology and operations to position themselves on the right side of the streaming revolution for the media customers they have long served.”
The WTA reminds readers that it was usually DTH/DBS that powered the expansion of the teleport industry. “Then came developments on the ground that changed the tune: the rise of anytime-anywhere consumption of TV, high-resolution streaming services exploiting higher-speed, lower-cost terrestrial connectivity, and the cloud and content distribution networks as alternatives for distribution. But the trends hitting the revenues of satellite operators have not necessarily made themselves felt in the teleport business. Innovative operators have changed their investment strategies, revamped technology and operations, built new expertise in-house and effectively targeted today’s broader range of content origination and distribution companies as customers.”