There's no question that digital technology has revolutionized photography. The statistics speak for themselves: not only have the past several years seen a boom in digital camera sales, but online photo sharing and printing services are proliferating everywhere. But Vamsi Sistla, director of broadband and residential entertainment research at ABI Research, says that we're looking at the new medium through an "old lens." What did most amateur snapshooters do with their analog pictures? They mounted them in albums. Family and friends could hold albums in their laps and share the viewing experience. What must most digital snapshooters do? View their pictures on a computer; upload them to a Web site (more computing); email them to each other (still more computing!) -- or have them printed for mounting in an old-fashioned album. While sharing via email is a step in the right direction, printing them and putting in old-fashioned albums is a step backwards. "What's needed," says Sistla, "is the digital equivalent of the old photo album: a stand-alone, tablet-shaped device with a nice big screen that will display pictures much as the old family album did."
The satellite communications industry is experiencing a transformative moment. What was once the exclusive domain of government agencies and deep-pocketed corporations is rapidly becoming accessible to everyone. This democratization of space-based connectivity represents a significant technological achievement and a fundamental shift in our understanding of global communications infrastructure. The dramatic acceleration in satellite system deployment tells a compelling story. Satellite Broadband Market Development With over 160 launches recorded by August 2025 alone, we're witnessing an unprecedented build-out of orbital infrastructure. This surge is driven by three converging factors: Plummeting launch costs through reusable rocket technology, the miniaturization of satellites enabling bulk launches, and intensifying commercial competition among private companies and nations alike. The result is a space ecosystem that looks radically different from even a decade ago, with approxi...