{"id":58258,"date":"2021-01-19T21:59:16","date_gmt":"2021-01-19T13:59:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/satellites-growth-outlook-improves-in-2021\/"},"modified":"2021-01-19T21:59:16","modified_gmt":"2021-01-19T13:59:16","slug":"satellites-growth-outlook-improves-in-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/satellites-growth-outlook-improves-in-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"Satellite\u2019s Growth Outlook Improves in 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>As the long-awaited U.S. C-band spectrum auction is finally under way, the revenue growth outlook for the global satellite industry is improving heading into 2021, particularly for the European-listed operators. <\/p>\n<p>With industry revenue growth under pressure since 2015, with the exception of the fixed broadband (mainly in North America) and aviation (pre-COVID-19) satellite segments, Credit Suisse believes an improving revenue outlook could \u2014 for the first time in many years \u2014 stimulate increased investor interest in the sector.  <\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/evPaM5VjRpWa6UH8eXDc_VS_020121_DGTL_Cover-300x225.jpg\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"\" style=\"width: 120px; height: auto;\" decoding=\"async\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/evPaM5VjRpWa6UH8eXDc_VS_020121_DGTL_Cover-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/evPaM5VjRpWa6UH8eXDc_VS_020121_DGTL_Cover-800x599.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/evPaM5VjRpWa6UH8eXDc_VS_020121_DGTL_Cover-640x480.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/evPaM5VjRpWa6UH8eXDc_VS_020121_DGTL_Cover.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\">\t\t\t<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"fs-5 mt-0\">Explore the February 2021 Issue<\/h3>\n<p class=\"mb-0 fs-smaller text-balance\">Check out more from this issue and find your next story to read.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t<button class=\"btn btn-primary\" type=\"button\" data-bs-toggle=\"offcanvas\" data-bs-target=\"#offcanvasMENU\" aria-controls=\"offcanvasExample\" aria-label=\"button\" style=\"white-space: nowrap;\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\tView More <i class=\"bi bi-arrow-right-circle\"><\/i><br \/>\n\t\t\t<\/button><\/p>\n<p>Credit Suisse\u2019s recently updated Global Satellite database calculated that global satellite revenue growth deteriorated over the past 12 months, down 3 percent Year-Over-Year (YOY) in Third Quarter 2020 (Q3) compared to a half a percent YOY decline in Q3 2019. But more importantly, it improved sequentially, from -5 percent in Q2 2020, helped by easing pandemic headwinds, mainly for Aviation and other mobility, and also due to less drag from video. <\/p>\n<p>Video growth slightly improved sequentially in Q3 2020 to a 7.9 percent decline on constant FX from an 8.4 percent decline in Q2 2020, while improving sequential global satellite mobility, aviation, and fixed broadband revenue growth was enough to offset pressure in the government segment. <\/p>\n<h3>Video Growth Trends to be Less Negative Over 2021-23E <\/h3>\n<p>From a European perspective, the outlook for video revenue remains critical to both SES and Eutelsat group growth over the next few years with video still making up over 60 percent of last actual year revenue for both companies. With the reassuring recent Sky Italia renegotiation now behind Eutelsat, an expected rebound in global sports and events in 2021, less drag from U.S. video and incremental emerging market Direct-to-Home (DTH) demand, CS expects video growth trends to become gradually less negative over 2021-23E (Figure 1) \u2014 the key to nudging SES 2021 like-for-like revenue growth into positive territory, +1 percent in 2021E, and +2 percent in 2022E. <\/p>\n<p><script>var AIAD_fcd45f981d570e35cee941b23edc69c7_6a67b132c3e4b;googletag.cmd.push(function(){var AIMAP_29b58f13885ebf8ea6b032f958eb0748 = googletag.sizeMapping().addSize([992, 100], [[970, 90], [970, 250]]).addSize([768, 100], [728, 90]).addSize([320, 100], [320, 50]).build();var AIMAP_737ce075cc05dd766c8f8ea08f3faa73 = googletag.sizeMapping().addSize([768, 100], [728, 90]).addSize([320, 100], [320, 50]).build();var AIMAP_21fe3bcfb86a8660aba4e721ee9338f3 = googletag.sizeMapping().addSize([1200, 100], [970, 250]).addSize([768, 100], [600, 300]).addSize([320, 100], [300, 250]).build();AIAD_fcd45f981d570e35cee941b23edc69c7_6a67b132c3e4b = googletag.defineSlot('\/987\/satellitetoday.com\/via-satellite-digital-issue-ads', [ [600, 300], [300, 250], [970, 250] ], 'div-gpt-ad-1774631144891- 0-6a67b132c3e4c').defineSizeMapping(AIMAP_21fe3bcfb86a8660aba4e721ee9338f3).setCollapseEmptyDiv(true).addService(googletag.pubads());   });<\/script><script>googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1774631144891- 0-6a67b132c3e4c'); });<\/script><\/p>\n<figure class=\"flex flex-col justify-center items-center w-full image-block px-8\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Placeholder alt text\" class=\"w-full object-cover mx-auto max-w-sm\" src=\"http:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/PP0AxVG8TZWg7UHO3l5x_Picture1.png\"><figcaption class=\"p-3 bg-gray-300 bg-opacity-50 italic mx-auto max-w-sm\">Source: CS ResearchGlobal Satellite Video revenue growth (selected operators based on CSe) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>CS also believe that Ultra-High Definition (UHD) and a lower drag from Standard Defintion (SD) switch off over the next few years could also boost TV transponder demand from 2021E with broadly stable pricing trends globally on a per transponder basis \u2014 stable trends in Europe, ongoing pricing pressure in North America, and stability in emerging markets. <\/p>\n<h3>Government and Aviation Suffered From Pandemic Effects in Q3 2020<\/h3>\n<p>Global satellite government revenue growth slipped into negative territory in Q3 2020, on CS estimates, declining 2 percent, the first YOY decline in many years. SES actually saw a big sequential improvement in government revenue +6.5 percent in Q3 2020 vs. -3.8 percent in Q2 2020, driven by new Medium-Earth Orbit (MEO) and Geostationary (GEO) business signed in the first half of 2020. But it was not enough to offset worsening trends reported by Eutelsat, with lower U.S. government renewal revenues; Viasat, with pandemic effects complicating product manufacturing and shipments; and Iridium, according to CS. Combining GEO with Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) and MEO capacity remains an advantage to GEO-only players. <\/p>\n<p>Unsurprisingly, satellite revenue in aviation including In-Flight Connectivity (IFC), has been hit hard in the past six months due to less global air travel, but Q3 2020 did see a small sequential improvement, still down 17 percent YOY compared to flat in Q3 2019, and down 24 percent in Q2 2020. <\/p>\n<p>Global satellite mobility revenue has actually held up well with SES, in particular, which stated that its Mobility segment performance has been \u201clargely unaffected\u201d by COVID-19 as the vast majority of its contracts are fixed. However, SES expects the impact to be potentially larger going forward. <\/p>\n<h3>C-band Auction as a Key Catalyst<\/h3>\n<p>CS has published scenarios with total aggregate C-band spectrum proceeds of $47 billion to $61 billion. Both SES ($3.97 billion) and Eutelsat ($0.5 billion) are in line for C-band relocation payments which, according to CS, could be a key catalyst for long-term investors to revisit the European-listed satellites. Although some long-term investors remain skeptical that the C-band process will be completed on time, expected C-band auction proceeds expected by CS to well exceed $10 billion needed to safeguard satellite spectrum payments. As satellite operators are just one year away receiving the first tranche of proceeds, this may be near enough for investors to contemplate the use of the proceeds. <\/p>\n<h3>CS Remains Skeptical on the Smallsat LEO Business Models<\/h3>\n<p>CS continue to be skeptical on the business case for smallsat LEO constellations, repeating comments it has made many times before. We continue to see key challenges facing so-called smallsat constellations in launching and maintaining a fleet of 700+ satellites in orbit, given the substantial number of launches this would involve over a sustained period of time. The likely cost to completion of these smallsat constellations is several billions dollars, uncertain despite levels of end user demand and returns. In 2019, for example, smallsat company LeoSat suspended its operations due to a lack of investment while OneWeb was also recently recapitalised with the United Kingdom\u2019s government taking a 50 percent stake in the company. <\/p>\n<p>The one LEO operator that is both well-funded and has made solid progress to date, in the view of CS research, is SpaceX\u2019s Starlink constellation. However, as CS recently pointed out \u2014 SpaceX\u2019s consumer broadband tracking antenna may need a subsidy of up to $2,000 each to get to a reported $500 retail price point for the customer. As such, CS believes even Starlink faces future challenges in making its broadband business a commercial success. <\/p>\n<h3>Satellite CapEx Efficiencies to Continue<\/h3>\n<p>In our view, the overall CapEx per amount of satellite capacity is likely to continue to fall. SES sees five-year rolling CapEx falling 28 percent during 2010-22, it currently explicitly guides for CapEx out to 2022. Furthermore, Eutelsat recently said it was replacing three satellites at its key European Hotbird position with two new satellites, EUTELSAT 13F and EUTELSAT 13G, at a lower cost. <strong class=\"Annotation -strong\"> VS<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em class=\"Annotation -emphasis\">Paul Sidney is a Credit Suisse research analyst <\/em><\/p>\n<p>,<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"widget-title\">In This Issue<\/h2>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t<!-- post id 405856:  \/code\/wp-content\/themes\/ai-beehive\/template-parts\/content\/post-snippet.php --><\/p>\n<figure class=\"overflow-hidden w-100 me-3\">\n<p>\t<img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"300\" height=\"167\" src=\"https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/podEkfbiScOtWdfu6ndS_ED_Note-300x167.jpg\" class=\"img-responsive wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" style=\"\" decoding=\"async\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/podEkfbiScOtWdfu6ndS_ED_Note-300x167.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/podEkfbiScOtWdfu6ndS_ED_Note-800x446.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/podEkfbiScOtWdfu6ndS_ED_Note-640x357.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/podEkfbiScOtWdfu6ndS_ED_Note.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\">\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n<h3 class=\"fs-4 w-100 line-clamp-3\">\n<p>\t\t\t\tHidden Gems and 2021 Predictions<br \/>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n<p><!-- .post-snippet --><\/p>\n<hr class=\"my-3 d-block d-md-none\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<!-- post id 405848:  \/code\/wp-content\/themes\/ai-beehive\/template-parts\/content\/post-snippet.php --><\/p>\n<figure class=\"overflow-hidden w-100 me-3\">\n<p>\t<img width=\"300\" height=\"199\" src=\"https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/kfbgwVvSiyJkWWf3s1Gf_iss050e066094_large-300x199.jpg\" class=\"img-responsive wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" style=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/kfbgwVvSiyJkWWf3s1Gf_iss050e066094_large-300x199.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/kfbgwVvSiyJkWWf3s1Gf_iss050e066094_large-800x532.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/kfbgwVvSiyJkWWf3s1Gf_iss050e066094_large-640x426.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/kfbgwVvSiyJkWWf3s1Gf_iss050e066094_large.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\">\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n<h3 class=\"fs-4 w-100 line-clamp-3\">\n<p>\t\t\t\tNSR\u2019s 14 Predictions for Space in 2021<br \/>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n<p><!-- .post-snippet --><\/p>\n<hr class=\"my-3\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t<!-- post id 405839:  \/code\/wp-content\/themes\/ai-beehive\/template-parts\/content\/post-snippet.php --><\/p>\n<figure class=\"overflow-hidden w-100 me-3\">\n<p>\t<img width=\"300\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/qIpFPCAYSaiIJJWOxjkH_VS_020121_DGTL_Pay_TV-300x225.jpg\" class=\"img-responsive wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" style=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/qIpFPCAYSaiIJJWOxjkH_VS_020121_DGTL_Pay_TV-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/qIpFPCAYSaiIJJWOxjkH_VS_020121_DGTL_Pay_TV-800x599.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/qIpFPCAYSaiIJJWOxjkH_VS_020121_DGTL_Pay_TV-640x480.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/qIpFPCAYSaiIJJWOxjkH_VS_020121_DGTL_Pay_TV.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\">\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n<h3 class=\"fs-4 w-100 line-clamp-3\">\n<p>\t\t\t\tPay-TV Operator Execs Discuss Satellite Television in the 2020s<br \/>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n<p><!-- .post-snippet --><\/p>\n<hr class=\"my-3 d-block d-md-none\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<!-- post id 405842:  \/code\/wp-content\/themes\/ai-beehive\/template-parts\/content\/post-snippet.php --><\/p>\n<figure class=\"overflow-hidden w-100 me-3\">\n<p>\t<img width=\"300\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/t5ZobbbRAK1T75XPpbkv_VS_020121_DGTL_Orbcomm-300x225.jpg\" class=\"img-responsive wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" style=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/t5ZobbbRAK1T75XPpbkv_VS_020121_DGTL_Orbcomm-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/t5ZobbbRAK1T75XPpbkv_VS_020121_DGTL_Orbcomm-800x599.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/t5ZobbbRAK1T75XPpbkv_VS_020121_DGTL_Orbcomm-640x480.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/t5ZobbbRAK1T75XPpbkv_VS_020121_DGTL_Orbcomm.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\">\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n<h3 class=\"fs-4 w-100 line-clamp-3\">\n<p>\t\t\t\tSatellite IoT Tech\u2019s Role in Vaccine Distribution<br \/>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n<p><!-- .post-snippet --><\/p>\n<hr class=\"my-3\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t<!-- post id 405836:  \/code\/wp-content\/themes\/ai-beehive\/template-parts\/content\/post-snippet.php --><\/p>\n<figure class=\"overflow-hidden w-100 me-3\">\n<p>\t<img width=\"300\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IzlnHbKvTim1RtMKfcn1_VS_020121_DGTL_Cover_Inside_-300x225.jpg\" class=\"img-responsive wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" style=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IzlnHbKvTim1RtMKfcn1_VS_020121_DGTL_Cover_Inside_-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IzlnHbKvTim1RtMKfcn1_VS_020121_DGTL_Cover_Inside_-800x599.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IzlnHbKvTim1RtMKfcn1_VS_020121_DGTL_Cover_Inside_-640x480.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IzlnHbKvTim1RtMKfcn1_VS_020121_DGTL_Cover_Inside_.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\">\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n<h3 class=\"fs-4 w-100 line-clamp-3\">\n<p>\t\t\t\tSunil Bharti Mittal Talks Renewed Faith in \u2018Hidden Gem\u2019 OneWeb<br \/>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n<p><!-- .post-snippet --><\/p>\n<hr class=\"my-3 d-block d-md-none\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<!-- post id 405845:  \/code\/wp-content\/themes\/ai-beehive\/template-parts\/content\/post-snippet.php --><\/p>\n<figure class=\"overflow-hidden w-100 me-3\">\n<p>\t<img width=\"300\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SemAkA0TQ0qEl0IoYHzu_VS_020121_DGTL_FCC_5G-300x225.jpg\" class=\"img-responsive wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" style=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SemAkA0TQ0qEl0IoYHzu_VS_020121_DGTL_FCC_5G-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SemAkA0TQ0qEl0IoYHzu_VS_020121_DGTL_FCC_5G-800x599.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SemAkA0TQ0qEl0IoYHzu_VS_020121_DGTL_FCC_5G-640x480.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.satellitetoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SemAkA0TQ0qEl0IoYHzu_VS_020121_DGTL_FCC_5G.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\">\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n<h3 class=\"fs-4 w-100 line-clamp-3\">\n<p>\t\t\t\tThe FCC\u2019s Path to a U.S. Nationwide 5G Rollout Gets Lost in the Thick of Rural America<br \/>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n<p><!-- .post-snippet --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As the long-awaited U.S. C-band spectrum auction is finally under way, the revenue growth outlook for the global satellite industry is improving heading into 2021, particularly for the European-listed operators. With industry revenue growth under pressure since 2015, with the exception of the fixed broadband (mainly in North America) and aviation (pre-COVID-19) satellite segments, Credit [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":58259,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-58258","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58258"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58258"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58258\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58259"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58258"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58258"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58258"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}