Last week, UAE-based satellite operator Yahsat announced it is using Newtech's (News - Alert) FlexACM technology to deliver its Ka-band IP trunking service.

Announced at CABSAT 2012 in Dubai, Yahsat's YahCarrier business service will be the region's first Ka-band IP trunking service.   YahCarrier is designed for carriers, IPSs, and corporate network service providers across the Middle East, Africa, and Southwest Asia to provide a reliable, cost-effective “always on” solution for backhauling traffic from underserved and unserved locations to the Internet.

Newtech will support YahCarrier by installing FlexACM hubs and terminals from end-to-end on each side of the Ka-band satellite link. Yahsat will use the full set of FlexACM-enabled Newtec (News - Alert) Elevation products, including IP modulators and demodulators, IP modems, and a range of IP appliances to prove traffic enhancement, compression, and protection capabilities for IP services.

Yahsat's coverage extends to more than 140 countries across the Middle East, Africa, Europe and Southwest Asia. Set to launch in April 2012 from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, Yahsat Y1B will include a multi spot-beam Ka-band payload specifically designed to support broadband access networks. 

Yahsat Y1B was originally scheduled for a February launch, but was delayed due to two postponements for launching a SES-4 satellite from Baikonur.  The delays caused what the company called a “domino effect” in the launch schedule since Yahsat will be launched using the same facilities as SES (News - Alert)-4. Until SES-4 was put into orbit, work on the Y1B launch could not move forward. SES-4 had been originally scheduled for a December 27, 2011 launch, but didn't get off the pad until February 14, 2012.

This is the second Ka-band IP win Newtec has announced in the last 30 days.   Earlier in February, InSat signed a deal with Newtec for delivery of its Ka-band Internet service in Afghanistan using Avantai's HYLAS 2 satellite scheduled for launch in June 2012. InSat users could get up to 16 Mbps of download speed with up to 2 Mbps on the return channel with Newtec's Sat3Play hardware using a 75 centimeter dish antenna.

Ka-band is surging in usage around the globe. In January, ViaSat (News - Alert) showed off its Exede consumer broadband service for North America at CES (News - Alert) 2012, along with plans to offer enterprise and mobile broadband plans.   Exede will deliver up to 12 Mbps downstream and up to 3 Mbps upstream at a price of around $50 per month with a 7.5 GB cap. ViaSat is also installing its new service on JetBlue aircraft to provide in-flight Internet service.