Hi, this is my first post and I have a couple of questions about satellites.

How many local stations have their own original programming that they then send out to a regional network? I'm guessing KXL/The Game with Lars, Ducks, and TrailBlazers, and KPAM with the Beavers. Does KXL still send out Radio Northwest news to stations around the state outside of Lars' show?

Also, if other stations or programs wanted to get onto a satellite, how much does this cost or is it even possible? Do they go to existing stations, or to fledling networks, or what?

If anyone can help me out that would be great. Whenever I try to google this, I end up with a bunch of links to satellite radio or satellite phones.

Before satellites are even built or launched, the transponders and time thereon are leased to networks and brokers. Occasional use is arranged through either networks that have control of transponders available for occasional use or brokers. Programming that is live and extends beyond quarter hour duration is generally arranged for well in advance, the exception being disaster coverage.

Not every satellite has the same footprint, so depending on whom the end user is, care must be used in selecting which bird to borrow, so to speak.

Uplinks are hugely expensive to plan, build, maintain and operate, whether fixed or mobile.


Satellite time is also expensive, especially on an as needed basis. It sometimes is just not available at any price due to existing contracts, previous scheduling and higher priority customers.

The spacing between satellites limits the amount that can be in orbit at any one time, so in essence, there is a waiting list to launch new ones to replace old ones.

This is a big money game. Uplinking audio only is quasi affordable, but the big game is video.

There is plenty of info about this on the internet. I'm surprised you had problems finding what you needed. Start here:

http://www.radio-electronics.com/info/satellite/index.php

One thing I have often wondered is: with broadband Internet access becoming commonplace (I guess that just depends upon whom you ask) and assuming such a connection becomes wide-spread for content distribution in the same vein as satellites are being used today, will satellite communication become a thing of the past in the somewhat near future (figure, maybe within the next 10-15 years)?

I mean, it's been a *really* long while since networks were sending out big 16" records of radio shows to stations!! I've read reports from lots of people saying how satellite-based syndication killed off syndication via physical media like records and later on, tapes. I kinda' am curious as to how much longer it may be before the Internet does that to satellites.

Who knows? Maybe someday Panarex (the company that makes Pansat gear) might just end up marketing a super-swook "Free to air FIOS receiver" of some sort...... ;o)

"will satellite communication become a thing of the past in the somewhat near future (figure, maybe within the next 10-15 years)? "

Highly improbable.

Two ways to analyze this. Follow the money or follow the bandwidth.

Historically, the major networks delivered programming around the continental U.S. via terrestrial microwave. This necessitated many "hops" each one involving the process of receiving and re-transmitting the signal many times, where each repeating step required a working (power) site, usually requiring a tower and big horn antennae and line of sight to the next hop. Basically a maintenance nightmare. When the networks went to satellite delivery, each network affiliate got a dish and a receiver and voila, instant elimination of all that infrastructure. Going to a network of fiber optic cables puts two distinct weaknesses into the path:

1. Frequency of failure: The first thing they teach you in any class about fiber optics is that the most likely cause of failure is a sub-contractors back hoe. Few sub-contractors work in outer space.
2. Nodes. The satellite system has a source, destination, and a transponder. I don't think that the path analysis of a broadband signal would be anywhere near as simple. So many routers and broadband gateways to deal with, even in a VPN. Not to mention the security aspect. Not to mention how much harder it is to load balance and guarantee bandwidth to any specific customer.

The money:

Building the satellite system and maintaining it isn't cheap, but somehow the notion that going wired would be less expensive since fiber is owned and leased and right of way costs can mount up fast. Fiber is great for getting across town, but relying on it to work flawlessly (or as flawless as satellite) seams far fetched in the sense that each network affiliate would have a different path to troubleshoot. The old addage in satellite was "It looks good leaving here" won't mean much when the network signal has 1000 transmission paths for 1000 affiliates if they went broadband, and there is one path for satellite delivery.
The maintenance costs of broadband would be astronomical.

This is not to say that VPN and fiber optics aren't already in use for this purpose, in fact they are. However, as a main feed for large networks it seems to be an unmanageable option.

Specialty shows are now available as downloads online from FTP servers owned by the program distributor.

These are mostly Weekend shows like AT40, etc.

Most if not all non real time syndicated shows are now available this way.

As Andy says, real time is a whole other can of worms. One of which would be latnecy... If the show arrived at each station at a different time you could have issues taking live callers, meeting network top of hour breaks, etc.

Thank you very much for the posts and the link.

Very helpful