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SPACEWAY®

The new SPACEWAY® platform represents the bigest step forward in the history of satellite communications. Made by Boeing, the spacecraft represents the next generation in satellite communications technology that will form the basis for the next generation of the HughesNet® service.

The SPACEWAY satellite system has unique capabilities enabling high-speed data networking, powerful groundbreaking applications, and unlocking a wealth of value-added HughesNet services. Operating in the Ka-band spectrum, utilizing DVB-S2 with ACM, SPACEWAY employs high-performance, onboard digital processing, packet switching, and spot-beam technology to offer site-to-site connectivity.

SPACEWAY technology combined with the newly designed .74 dish antenna, and HN9000S modem with multiple speed and performance enhancements will provide you with a complete solution that is fast and reliable.

Advanced Technology

Through use of advanced multi-spot-beam antenna and onboard data processing technologies, SPACEWAY satellites are at the vanguard of the most advanced next-generation high-capacity Ka-band satellites. Such capabilities are the foundation for a host of advanced features such as full-mesh, single-hop, connectivity among customer terminals.

DVB is an international organization who set standards for the transmission of digital data over satellite. The DVB-S2 is the latest generation standard for transmission over satellite. The "ACM" feature of this standard provides for the Adaptive Coding and Modulation of the outbound channel. The DVB-S2 with ACM allows for increased throughput, more powerful error correction, less power utilization by the satellite, and a closed-loop link control that allows feedback to the satellite and automatic real-time power adjustments to the customer's system to mitagate bad weather conditions.

SPACEWAY represents the most sophisticated advanced packet transmission infastruction complete with IP-based user interfaces, satellite terminals, comprehensive network management and service management functionality, all optimized to provide end-to-end broadband access and network connectivity services.

SPACEWAY Benefits

High Speeds, Small Dishes

The high-powered SPACEWAY satellite enables very high speeds in both directions while using compact, cost-efficient terminals. SPACEWAY also provides a variety of service options to meet every need.

True Point-to-Point Connectivity Via Satellite

While spot beams are not new technology, SPACEWAY has taken them to a whole new level and to a whole new purpose. In the past, spot beams were used to reach areas traditionally outside a normal satellite's "footprint". For example, a satellite covering North America might have a spot beam covering Hawaii. By contrast, SPACEWAY places 780 downlink beams and 112 uplink beams next to each other for its US coverage. Thus SPACEWAY does away with the traditional CONUS beam and spot beam architecture for an all spot beam architecture.

Since frequencies in spot beams that are non-adjacent to each other can be reused, we gain more usable frequency than is available on current satellites. In fact, one SPACEWAY satellite is equilivalent to 8-10 satellites built on current technology!

However, to make all those spot beams work as a usable system, another technology was required - the SPACEWAY onboard processor. This processor moves bits from one uplink spot beam to one or more downlink spot beams, showcasing true point-to-point connectivity via satellite. These two technologies working together, along with many other innovations, means True Point-to-Point Connectivity Via Satellite. SPACEWAY - making satellite communications cost-effective.

Demodulation and Remodulation on the Satellite

In order to convert the satellite signals back into digital signals to transport across the onboard processor, SPACEWAY must demodulate the signal and then remodulate it before sending it back down to earth. This remodulation significantly increases the power of the signal, allowing SPACEWAY terminals to be similar in cost to normal VSAT terminals while providing significantly increased performance. SPACEWAY - a node of efficiency.

The Most Flexible Satellite Data Platform Available Anywhere

Having digital connectivity on the spacecraft also allows an unprecedented level of control over type of connection being made. This allows SPACEWAY to have many varying types of services operating on the spacecraft concurrently. Services include innovative video-conferencing using on-demand, constant rate-guaranteed bandwidth, frame relay-like services requiring enterprise grade performance, and DSL-like services requiring low-cost non-guarantee bandwidth. SPACEWAY - delivering what our customers needed.

Quality

The SPACEWAY satellites all digital architecture provides the highest levels of quality and performance. SPACEWAY incompasses a host of advanced techniques to mitigate rain fade. Allowing the spacecraft to increase power in areas affected by rain and decrease power in areas which are dry and do not need the extra power. The very controls put into the system that allow the SPACEWAY system to offer such varied services also serve another key purpose. Those controls allow the system to guarantee bandwidth for services requiring guaranteed bandwidth. SPACEWAY - the epitome of quality.