The UK Department for Trade and Industry has recently launched a new programme which will encourage the development of multimedia satellite services for schools along with other services. These include intranet services for Government and small and medium-sized enterprises; video on demand and other consumer services; plus multimedia satellite services to meet critical defence needs.
According to the Science and Technology minister, Ian Taylor "Satellites have the potential to take the information superhighway to every corner of the globe. In the long run they could make using the Internet faster and cheaper and enable it to be accessed from any point on the planet - no matter how remote."
Mr Taylor was commenting on the announcement of a programme to encourage industry to come up with new ways to deliver multimedia services via satellite. Under the Satellite Multimedia Applications Demonstration Programme (SMADP), which is being sponsored by the British National Space Centre (BNSC), consortia will be invited to put forward proposals on how to provide information technology services more efficiently.
A frequent complaint from Internet users is how long it takes to locate the information they are looking for. Exploring ways to exploit satellite links, which could be used in addition to the existing services from ground-based cable and fibre optic systems, would considerably speed up the process of surfing the net.
The aim of SMADP is to draw the attention of business and the public sector, including Government departments, to the satellite-based multimedia applications which are springing up. Under SMADP, UK industry has been invited to submit proposals demonstrating the uses of satellite communications. Novel multimedia applications in other sectors will also be considered, if market potential can be demonstrated. The Programme forms part of the UK Government’s Information Society Initiative (ISI) and has been developed following a BNSC commissioned study in February 1996 to explore the role of satellites in the information superhighway. This study was completed in July and has identified market opportunities for satellites to meet the needs of the information society.
It is expected that most consortia putting forward proposals will consist wholly or mainly of small and medium sized enterprises. The proposals must include a user of the satellite application and consortium members including the user must be prepared to co-fund the application demonstration. In addition proposals must contain assessments of market opportunities and plans for commercial exploitation. The deadline for proposals is the end of April.
A new study, soon to be commissioned by the British National Space Centre (BNSC), will also examine the opportunities for developing Ka band technology for use in satellite communications. A few years ago the European Space Agency was in fact experimenting with the use of Ka band technology for distance learning.
The growth of major satellite systems has put a strain on existing frequency bands which means that there is a need to look to higher frequencies such as the Ka band. New systems using this frequency will provide wide bandwidth and interactive multimedia services for a broad range of business and consumer uses. It is hoped that this new BNSC study will show the way for UK industry to exploit market opportunities in this area, by identifying users’ needs and the critical technologies required to develop new systems.
For more information about SMADP contact:
Hemat Gohil or John Francis at the Telecommunications Directorate, BNSC, 1.56
Grey Zone,
151 Buckingham Palace Road, London SW1W 9SS, United Kingdom.
Tel: +44 171 215 0708/0709