• Broadband is the latest 'must have' buzzword, but what is broadband?
  • What does it mean?

Well, broadband is short for broad bandwidth or wide bandwidth. This as the name implies, means a high data rate link for such applications as video on demand or internet connections. The current bandwidth is around 2Mb or 2 millions bits per second. This is just enough for near broadcast quality video, (broadcast quality video is normally between 4 and 8 Mb) and is excellent for internet connections.

• Internet Via Satellite - 'Broadband Internet'

Firstly, here is where to find the service providers.

There are at least two kinds of broadband internet via satellite. The first, is a kind of store and foward service which when a page is requested will not immediately deliver it. The pages are cached and sent in batches using the 2Mb bandwidth for all pages. This by it's very nature reduces the available bandwidth to individual subscribers.

The second is the better, true 2Mb downlinks from an ISP broadcasting via satellite. If you have a DVB card in your PC connected to a suitable antenna then you only need to addition of a normal dial up modem to your PC to use broadband satellite internet. Suitable ISP's can charge around £30 a month which is comparable to BT's ADSL always on connection. They offer the same speed of 2Mb download and the pages are requested using the dial up modem. The pages are requested using a phone line because currently there is no infrastructure in place for everyone to transmit page requests via satellite. This is soon to change however, because plans are being made to allow new terminals to be made available to the public for transmitting aswell as receiving data via satellite. Imagine being able to truly access the net on your TV and broadcast your own video.

More information on the hardware you need for Broadband Internet via Satellite is available on our DVB page.

• So What Can Broadband Satellite Do That ADSL Can't?

ADSL is a broadband internet service that comes down your phone line. This line is a copper wire and although fast it still doesn't deliver you TV or interactive shopping (apart from internet shopping and streaming video TV). In short, satellite broadband has the potential to open up TV and internet services to the masses in a new way. Fully interactive, TV on demand, Movies, Music, News and other informations services, aswell as the best of the internet at speeds we still dream of all through one dish and set top box. This all eventually comes in one TV with hard disk digital recording built in. Wow, and it's just around the corner.

In the UK Sky Digital will be the main service provider and they already have Sky + which has a built in hard disk recorder and multiple demodulators so that you can record one channel and watch another. The digital video can also be paused even though it's live and the interatcive content is enhanced. This is but the first tentative step towards the full broadband experience.

• What about Cable?

Yes, cable, I hadn't forgotten about cable. Cable is also a broadband service which also delivers internet aswell as TV and can in theory do everything satellite can do. Unfortuneately, and I don't know why, but cable services just don't seem to be as popular as satellite. There isn't the quantity of content and information that satellite has. Cable internet is totally separate from the phone line and does not use ADSL. The service delivers TV, telephone and internet all at the same time and so in a way they are way ahead of satellite services. Cable always has allowed subscribers to transmit back down the cable in the same way as satellite subscribers will be able to in the future. So which is best? I already have satellite, so my opinion doesn't count. In short - you decide.