MSV Says Hybrid Satellite/Terrestrial Wireless Network Demo Quells Doubts

“MSV is looking for partners in the cellular business -- both existing cellular operators and new entrants. And those people will be encouraged to see a practical demonstration of the technology,” said industry analyst Tim Farrar: “It’s pretty critical that these companies get a partner for network deployment within the next six or nine months to enable them to move forward in a timely fashion” and meet FCC milestones. With Inmarsat’s recent 2 GHz petition, ICO raising $600 million, and Globalstar talking about its demonstrations of interoperability, at least 4 MSS players are competing to get a terrestrial partner, said Farrar: “Anything that can give MSV an advantage in terms of convincing a potential partner to pick them over another would be of great benefit to them,” since there are likely fewer “credible partners” to support a national footprint and market than there are MSS operators working on hybrid systems.

MSV’s sample hybrid network, created at its satellite gateway in Ottawa, used a modified CDMA 2000 cellular phone and base station, said Vp-Systems Engineering Santanu Dutta. Because “cost is paramount,” MSV used existing technology with “minor tweaks” to show “this is not terribly expensive to do,” Dutta told us. A team of veteran MSV engineers gave the standard CDMA phone L-band radio functionality, modifying the software for the phone and base station to accommodate the 125 millisecond satellite delay in each direction, he said. The test phone could communicate with both MSV satellites and link to the cellular base station, Dutta said: “And we proved the ability to combine the operation of two satellites, just like cellular today diversity combines between cellular stations. Then it connects into PSTN.”

The result was a phone able to switch between 850 MHz terrestrial wireless for CDMA and the L-band for satellite service by selecting a service option on the menu, said Dutta. The handset MSV plans will switch seamlessly between cellular and satellite functions on its own, he added. Those who view the hybrid design with doubt usually fix on older satellite phones’ bulky design and slower performance, MSV COO Mark Faris said: “There were some who doubted the feasibility of satellite compatibility with a standard handset.” But the software changes by Dutta’s team made the test phone’s L-band calls sound “as good as any call you'd make on a cellular network,” Faris said.

Faris said MSV is evaluating which air interface works best with its technology and which will be of maximum benefit to consumers. “We do intend to test a WiMAX phone. We haven’t ruled anything out at this time,” he said. Santanu said MSV’s technical discussions have included Qualcomm and Clarion and that all the major air interfaces are “potential candidates.” In terms of potential partnerships, MSV’s air interface of choice “is one of the big decisions,” Farrar said: “There are existing cellular players like Verizon and Sprint PCS with CDMA networks out there that are potential new entrants, but they may also be more interested in new data and new technologies.”

Pushing forward on the ground segment, Faris said MSV is siting terrestrial cellular locations and talking with system integrators. “We're trying to bring in all of the competitive parts that would be customary to a PCS company, so once we decide to, we're ready to rapidly deploy,” said Faris. MSV can’t put ATC towers everywhere, so the firm is looking at extending its technology for roaming partners, he said. “But interoperability with a potential roaming partner is more of a business negotiation than a technical one,” Faris said. As for the space segment, insights from the demonstrations will aid satellite manufacturers competing on MSV’s RFP, said Faris. But at this point, competition for MSV’s satellite contract is being run less on technical demands and more on scheduling issues, Dutta said.