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The Entire Outer Space at Satellite Russia & CIS 2016

The 8th International Conference Satellite Russia & CIS 2016, organized by COMNEWS Group, was held on 21-22 April 2016 and proved to be a success. It attracted more than 250 stakeholders of satellite communications and broadband market from all over Russia and a dozen other countries. The leading national satellite forum was endorsed by the Federal Agency of Communications (Rossvyaz), the State Space Corporation ROSСOSMOS, the Global VSAT Forum (GVF), the Russian Association of Aviation and Space Insurers (RAASI), the Association of designers, manufactures and users of equipment and applications based on Global Navigation Satellite systems “GLONASS/GNSS – Forum”, the Association of Regional Telecom Operators (ARTO), the non-profit organization "The National Association of house communications and information networks" (NADIKS), the Association of Human Resources Advisers (AHRA) and the International Telecommunications  Academy (MAC).

The general partner of Satellite Russia & CIS 2016 were Gazprom Space Systems; Tricolor TV was the official partner. SES became the gold partner, Airbus Defence and Space – the silver partner, Ingosstrakh – the bronze partner. Session sponsors were Newtec and VT iDirect. The event was held with the participation of Keysight Technologies, Iridium, Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd, Eastar and Eutelsat Networks.

The welcome speeches were made by Rashid Ismailov, Vice Minister of Telecom and Mass Communications of the Russian Federation, and Oleg Dukhovnitsky, Head of Rossvyaz.

In 2016, Satellite Russia & CIS conference was dedicated to a remarkable event – the 50th anniversary of signing an agreement between the governments of the USSR and the French Republic to cooperate in peaceful research and exploration of outer space. France is still Russia’s key partner in unpiloted space exploration. Many ongoing partnerships were established half a century ago, for example, the cooperation of the Russian Satellite Communications Company and Eutelsat; French-Russian joint ventures such as Airbus Defence & Space (Energia SAT, Synertec, Eurockot); the technology partnership between Thales Alenia Space and ISS Reshetnev; SRC Progress supplying Soyuz-ST carrier rockets to Arianespace to be launched from Kourou Space Center (French Guiana) and other partnerships. This cooperation was the main topic of a plenary session at the conference.

The session entitled “Russia and France: 50 years in space” was a round table to discuss the significance, results, challenges and the future of the cooperation which started in 1966, when the governments of the USSR and the French Republic signed an agreement to cooperate in peaceful research and exploration of outer space. The discussion was joined by Nikolay Sevastianov, Chief Designer, Gazprom Space Systems; Ashot Bakunts, Regional Director, Thales Alenia Space; Victor Voron, Head of fundamental space research department, State Corporation for Space Activities "Roskosmos"; Martin Van Schaik, Senior Vice President of Sales, Thales Alenia Space; Maxim Mysev, Head of Project and Analysis Division, Department of Infrastructure Projects, Russian Ministry of Communications and Mass Media.

The participants of the round table remembered the history of preparing and implementing the agreement, the participation of French companies in the establishment of the Russian orbital constellation of communication satellites, and French-Russian partnership in satellite and space equipment manufacturing. They spoke about the current technology partnership between French and Russian spacecraft manufacturers, the practical implementation and prospects of French-Russian long-term partnership in developing and building Soyuz ST carrier rockets to be launched from Kourou Space Center (French Guiana), the practical cooperation of French and Russian satellite providers and other related matters.

The global satellite telecommunications market is continuously choosing new technology solutions and new business models. Satellite providers, both in Russia and globally, now witness capacity oversupply and prices reduction. The conditions also change due to new national players entering the market. Therefore, the next session of Satellite Russia & CIS 2016 was dedicated to the present and future of satellite telecommunications market in Russia and abroad, as well as space programs in the CIS countries. This session was chaired by Alexey Belyakov, Executive Director, Cluster of Space Technologies and Telecommunication, Skolkovo Foundation.

Alexander Egorov, Head of Special Projects, Infrastructure Projects Department, Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications of the Russian Federation, made a presentation “Some aspects of the Russian Ministry of Communications activities in the field of satellite communications and broadcasting in the Russian Federation”. Nikolay Sevastianov, Chief Designer, Gazprom Space Systems, spoke about the opportunities and prospects for the development of satellite communication and broadcasting system "Yamal". Mohamed Youssif, Chief Operating Officer, ABS, took the floor with his speech “Satellites: Designing high quality and affordable capacity for now and the future”. Igor Gavrik, Head of Commercial Management, Production Republican Unitary Enterprise "Precise electromechanical plant" (Project "Belintersat"), told the audience about the national system of satellite communication and broadcasting of the Republic of Belarus. Simon Gatty Saunt, Regional Vice President in Europe, Data & Mobility Services, SES, offered his presentation “HTS - The game changer, new opportunities unlocked with SES”. Pavel Bakanov, General Director, Eastar, made a speech “Multiservice platforms for HTS satellites based on (modern Russian) equipment (UHP)”.

Television and broadband access services remain to be the main drivers of satellite communication development. The second session was chaired by Sergey Pekhterev, Head of AltegroSky, and dedicated to discussing the new opportunities for VSAT, satellite broadband internet access and satellite TV. Petr Korvyakov, First Deputy General Director, Gazprom Space Systems, presented a speech “Satellite communications services for fuel and energy complex”; Pavel Sladkikh, Director of Business Development, VT iDirect, – “Advanced Technologies for Satellite Services”. Jo De Loor, Market Director for Multiservice, HTS and Enterprise, Newtec, showed a presentation “Newtec Dialog: The scalable, flexible and efficient multiservice IP-based platform for mostly any kind of satellite network  configuration”; Kirill Yanchenko, CEO, Eutelsat Networks, – “EUTELSAT 36C. The satellite broadband Ka-band: New opportunities for businesses and consumers”. The speech “Added functionality of satellite equipment Gilat Ski Edge II-c” was made by Mikhail Pykhov, CTO, Gilat Satellite Networks (Eurasia).

A round table held simultaneously with the second session focused on different ways to protect operators’ commercial interests in the open market. Technical, financial and market risks of satellite providers are currently on the rise. It becomes more difficult to raise funds for new projects. The participants of the round table discussed how the financial and insurance market deals with this situation, and what solutions are offered to protect operators’ commercial interests. The discussion was chaired by Alexander Mikhailov, Head of Space and Telecommunications Department, Vnesheconombank (VEB). The round table was attended by Natalia Ramazanova, Deputy General Director on Economy and Finance, Gazprom Space Systems; Pavel Shutov, President, Russian Association of Aviation and Space Insurers (RAAKS); Alexander Shevchenko, Head of space activities security department, Ingosstrakh; Igor Smirnov, Senior Vice President, Marsh Space Projects; Timur Hayretdinov, Director of Structural Projects, EXIAR.

The session “New opportunities for VSAT, satellite broadband and satellite TV” continued, chaired by Sergey Gugkaev, CEO of Sea Launch. The speech “New satellite communications measurement techniques” was made by Maxim Sokovishin, Technical Expert in the Field of Formation and Signal Analysis, Keysight Technologies; the speech “Features of mobile satellite radio communications in Russia – new solutions from Iridium Russia” – by Dmitry Tarasov, Director of Sales in Russia and the CIS, Iridium. The presentation “New projects of Inmarsat” was shown by Julia Kulikova, Director of Department of Regulation in Eastern and Central Europe, Inmarsat SA. The main characteristics and opportunities of satellite communications system "Rosinfokom" were described by Inessa Glazkova, Executive Director, NEBO – GK; the communications in the Arctic region with the help of aerostats – by Mikhail Talesnikov, Commercial Director, Avgur.

The Russian government pays specific attention to expanding communications in socially and politically important regions. The first day of Satellite Russia & CIS 2016 concluded with a round table “The development of communications and broadcasting services in the Arctic, Crimea, the Siberian and the Far Eastern Federal Districts”. This round table was joined by Olga Makarova, Director of Internet and channel resources Department, Сarrier Business Development Unit, Corporate Center, MTS Group; Sergey Pekhterev, Head, AltegroSky; Mikhail Talesnikov, Commercial Director, Avgur; Alexey Ivanov, CEO, STV (Satellite TV MTS); Petr Korvyakov, First Deputy General Director, Gazprom Space Systems; and others. They focused on the most effective systems for IT development of such important regions and the possibility of alternatives to satellite communications when solving this task.

Earth remote sensing from outer space is the second biggest sector of space business after satellite communications. Geographic information services become increasingly attractive for public and corporate customers. For the second day, the conference moved to Telecommunication center "Shchelkovo" in the Moscow region, and the participants of the special session discussed Earth remote sensing systems (ERS) and geo-information systems in Russia and the world. The prospects of this industry’s development in Russia and the new efficient technology solutions were explored by the participants of this session chaired by Alexey Belyakov, Executive Director, Cluster of Space Technologies and Telecommunication, Skolkovo Foundation.

The second day started with a speech by Dmitry Sevastianov, CEO of Gazprom Space Systems, focusing on the business profile of Gazprom Space Systems. The next speech was offered by Vladimir Lazutin, Deputy Chief Designer, Gazprom Space Systems, and entitled “Geographic information services for fuel and energy complex”. The presentation “Russian remote sensing systems: Condition and Development Prospects” was made by Vladimir Shvedov, Head of Department, Federal Space Agency (Roskosmos). Bruno Bertolini, Senior Manager of Business Development Department of Geographic Information Systems, Airbus Defence and Space, presented a speech “Actionable Intelligence for the Challenges of Tomorrow”.

These speakers also participated in the round table “ERS prospects in the interests of business and government in Russia”, where they were joined by Sergey Miller, President, GIS-Association; Anton Danilenko, Chief Engineer, Prime Group; Aleksander Chekurin, Commercial Director, Rakurs. They spoke about the market prospects of development of Earth remote sensing systems and geo-information systems, the relevance of Earth remote sensing systems in the oil and gas industry, business opportunities in Earth remote sensing, the integration of Russian spatial data, the advantages of using small spacecrafts in Earth remote sensing, and forward-looking Russian nanosatellites as a part of Earth monitoring system.

The guests of Satellite Russia & CIS 2016 praised high-profile forum speakers and their impressive speeches and presentations. In the guests’ opinion, the forum offered valuable, exclusive knowledge and ample opportunities for business networking. COMNEWS Group invites all satellite communications and broadcasting market stakeholders to join the next year’s event – Satellite Russia & CIS 2017!