The CASBAA and CommunicAsia events in Singapore this year were a welcome and successful opportunity for the Hughes team to engage with our friends, colleagues and partners in the region.

At CASBAA, on Monday, June 25, I participated in an industry panel on 5G and satellite. While 5G is still years away from widespread deployment, the panel discussed the impact of 5G on the satellite industry, and the Asia Pacific region in particular. While spectrum availability continues to be a concern across the satellite industry, the general consensus is that 5G is destined to bring more opportunities for satellite, including backhaul.

The highlight of the week for us included our annual breakfast briefing held on Wednesday, June 27 at Level 69 at the Swissotel Stamford. Panoramic views of Singapore accentuated the fully attended event. The Hughes team briefed guests on what’s new from Hughes around the world with regards to services, technology and strategy.

From our point of view, the arrival of High-Throughput Satellite (HTS) technology in the region over the next 6-12 months will usher in a new era of connectivity.

Four HTS satellites are slated for launch over that timeframe: APStar 5C (also know as Telstar 18), SES-12, Horizons 3E and PSN 6. This really is the year of HTS in Asia Pacific, and we, along with our customers and partners in the region, are excited for the opportunities the increased capacity will bring. This holds true especially when paired with our JUPITER System technology to deliver the highest quality satellite broadband services to business and consumers throughout Asia Pacific.

In fact, another highlight for us at CommunicAsia was the announcement that PSN has selected the Hughes JUPITER System for the PSN 6 satellite to deliver broadband services to consumers and businesses across Indonesia.

Universal service is an emerging trend in the region with satellite viewed as a crucial delivery mechanism. Indonesia is leading the way and the government is actively looking at how satellite can be leveraged to quickly and cost effectively deliver broadband services throughout the country.

Another important trend is the use of community Wi-Fi to deliver broadband. Many service operators are using satellite to enable Wi-Fi hotspots where consumers can use prepaid services to access the Internet. These services make broadband affordable for virtually any income level, and we are seeing more and more interest from operators across Asia Pacific for this kind of solution.

Finally, Hughes also announced during CommunicAsia that Mutiara Smart has selected the JUPITER System as the foundation for their managed services offering to government entities in Malaysia. The multi-satellite capability of the JUPITER System will enable Mutiara to offer both Ku- and C-band services to its customers, while the enterprise grade Quality of Service (QoS) of the system equips Mutiara to deliver a high level of service that their customers demand.

There is a real excitement in the region about satellite and its role in delivering broadband to consumers and businesses throughout Asia Pacific, and we at Hughes look forward to helping Power a Connected Future there and around the world.