NSR’s Satellite Capacity Report Sees LEOs Massively Disrupting the Industry

Satcom Opportunity Generates $257B over 2022-32 with Satellite-Telco Integration Key to Growth with increasingly Commoditized Capacity

Cambridge, MA; London, UK – June 13, 2023 - NSR’s Satellite Capacity Supply & Demand, 20th Edition (SCSD20) observe the rapid rise in LEO satellites have forever altered the satellite capacity market, shifting it from high priced wholesale centric to one driven by near commodity pricing, value-added offerings and telco integration.  Massive LEO/MEO supply, coupled with innovative ground segment technology now makes satellite offerings more relevant than ever to the broader telecom industry.  With over $257 billion in satellite capacity revenue projected over the next decade, it is clear LEO satellites are a critical enabler of this growth.

The rise of LEOs with the entrance of Starlink only in the past two years and OneWeb, which is now fully deployed and available in select markets, is beginning to and will impact the industry profoundly over the short-to-long term. On the horizon are many other LEO programs in the early stages of development with Amazon Kuiper being a key player to watch in terms of market impact. Even SES mPower, a MEO offering, will have substantial impacts on this market transformation.

“Satcom will succeed by making telcos & MNOs successful. Satcom needs to become the new differentiator and a source of growth for the telco ecosystem” notes NSR Principal Analyst Lluc Palerm. “The industry needs to embrace capacity commoditization and adapt its business models accordingly: end-to-end services for Backhaul, multi-architecture networks, Cloud, SD-WAN, etc.”

“The Satcom industry is becoming extremely competitive as more Non-GEO solutions or services are added to the mix. The Non-GEO progression cannot be ignored anymore, as Starlink already acquired 1.5+ million subscribers worldwide, OneWeb completed its constellation and SES mPower has started launching its satellites,” states NSR Senior Analyst & report co-author Vivek Prasad. “Incumbents are looking to counter with any one or the combination of three strategies, i.e., compete with VHTS, build a multi-orbit strategy, or consolidate. But the key question remains: will these options be sufficient?”

About the Report

NSR’s Satellite Capacity Supply & Demand, 20th Edition provides a comprehensive perspective of supply, demand, price dynamics, application trends and the interaction of these elements on current and future market dynamics. SCSD20 offers a roadmap of opportunities as well as risks per market vertical, region and technology offering covering traditional FSS satellites and HTS solutions. With actionable quantitative and qualitative inputs for business planning and opportunity mapping, SCSD20 keeps readers ahead of the market curve.