Cellular's satellite backhaul options abound with no clear winner

Wireless network engineers who are looking for more ways to keep their cell sites connected need only to cast their eyes skyward.

There, in space, is a growing range of options for cell site satellite backhaul. SpaceX’s Starlink, Eutelsat OneWeb, Amazon’s Project Kuiper, Telesat’s Lightspeed and Rivada Space Networks are some of the new names joining existing players like Viasat and EchoStar.

However, analysts generally agree that there aren’t going to be many cell sites connected to satellites now or in the future, particularly in places like North America where fiber networks are widespread.

Further, the satellite services market is in nearly constant upheaval, with new connection options coming and going on an almost weekly basis. For example, just this month aerospace giant Boeing decided to scrap its plans to build a low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellation. Rivada, meanwhile, has missed payments to its main satellite vendor Terran Orbital.

It’s also unclear how the satellite backhaul market will develop in light of new technologies that promise to connect regular smartphones directly to satellites. It’s possible that such technologies could undermine the need for additional cell sites in rural areas – the kind of sites that would make use of satellite backhaul.

“I know it is a very, very small share of cell sites that are backhauled with satellites,” wrote Dell’Oro Group analyst Jimmy Yu in response to questions from Light Reading.

According to one estimate, the global satellite backhaul market will reach $3 billion by 2026, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.6%. Another estimate predicts revenues will grow at a 17.6% CAGR in the next 10 years and argues “there is still vast growth to be captured.”

The old and the new

“Historically it [satellite backhaul] has not been cheap,” said analyst Iain Gillott of iGR. Traditionally, satellite operators like Viasat and EchoStar have offered satellite backhaul options that provide relatively slow connections coupled with steep monthly service fees, he explained. As a result, most wireless network operators like AT&T and T-Mobile have looked to other backhaul technologies like fiber and microwave.

Satellite backhaul is “used in locations where fiber and point-to-point microwave is difficult to do,” wrote Dell’Oro’s Yu, adding that disaster recovery is another application for satellite. “For example, a small country that has one submarine cable connection,” he explained. “If that submarine cable breaks, the only connection to the outside world is through satellite.”

The problems surrounding satellite backhaul are exacerbated in the 5G era as speedy connections are paramount. The distance between traditional geosynchronous satellites and the Earth can introduce excessive latency, according to iGR’s Gillott.

As a result, “ideally you want fiber to your cell site,” he said.

But a new crop of players is promising something different. SpaceX’s Starlink proved out the LEO satellite model by launching lots of small satellites in orbits much closer to Earth. That setup reduces latency and speeds up connections.

But LEO constellations also create financial headaches for satellite operators that must launch hundreds of satellites into space.

Regardless, SpaceX currently counts around 5,000 satellites in orbit and is working on getting its second-generation satellites launched. Meanwhile, OneWeb now counts several hundred operational satellites, while Amazon has successfully tested a handful, according to reports.

To read the complete article, visit Light Reading.