IEC Telecom introduces a new suite of services powered by Starlink

IEC Telecom, an international satellite services operator, kicks off 2023 by introducing a suite of innovative services and solutions powered by Starlink. This new portfolio of services is designed to meet the specific communication needs of a variety of satellite communications users, from home workers to international businesses and shipping lines.

This announcement follows the signing of a distribution agreement between Starlink and IEC Telecom, which took place in December 2022.

The Covid-19 pandemic and the political unrest of 2022 have highlighted the importance of connectivity.

The Covid-19 pandemic and the political upheavals of 2022 have highlighted the importance of uninterrupted connectivity not only for business continuity, but also for security, responsiveness and resilience. .

Starlink’s New Location Solutions for Flexibility

Easy to deploy, Starlink’s new terrestrial solutions are designed to provide maximum flexibility for fixed and mobile installations. With IEC Telecom’s OneGate, corporate headquarters control their remote offices with this 360° network management tool. Customized solutions have been developed for humanitarian missions, energy and mining companies, as well as public services or transport companies.

Starlink marine offer for all types of vessels

The Starlink maritime offering is equivalent to the terrestrial offering in terms of services, but can be complemented with a range of IEC Telecom services specific to maritime. Compact and easy to install, Starlink kits are suitable for all types of vessels, including pleasure boats, commercial ships, ferries or cruise ships.

A growing market for satellite communications services

This new partnership comes at a time when LEO (Low Earth Orbit Satellite) “constellations” are rising in the very dynamic global market for satellite communications services. With an annual growth rate of 7%, the SATCOM market should indeed reach $40 billion by 2030. LEO satellite technology will take center stage in this process, accounting for 40% of this market.

This collaboration between IEC Telecom and Starlink will enable us to offer reliable and innovative solutions to satellite communication users, thus contributing to the growth of this fast-growing market.

In conclusion, IEC Telecom has announced its partnership with Starlink to offer an innovative suite of satellite communications services to meet the specific needs of various users. The proposed solutions are easy to implement and offer maximum flexibility. This partnership comes at a time when Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite constellations are rising in the very dynamic global satellite communications services market. This collaboration will enable us to offer reliable and innovative solutions for connecting users on land and at sea.

“One million Starlink terminals were activated in one year,” says Ervan Emilian

Thanks Ervan Emilian, Group CEO, IEC Telecom for agreeing to share his expertise on the subject with us star connection. I am doubly honored to publish this interview because Erwan has owned a Tesla Model S since 2014 and has subscribed to Tesla Mag news ever since. He told me that this car has saved his life more than 5 times.

Can you tell us how Starlink is useful for businesses and NGOs?

“BNP has subsidiaries in all major cities in Africa and it must have satellite connectivity: armies and NGOs need it. Initially, Starlink wanted to roll out its services over the air. So all the “service providers” like IEC Telecom moved to One web, which offers satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO) and offers a delay of a few milliseconds instead of 1 second. And then from September 2022, Starlink is open to service providers who commit to respect the following points:

• In its service plan, Starlink wants to offer complete transparency and prohibits IEC Telecom from applying a margin on the tariff offered for usage.
• IEC Telecom can support its customers with services specifically designed for humanitarian aid: ICRC, Doctors Without Borders, technical support needs to be available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

What kind of revolution is Starlink?

If I had to find a comparison, it’s between the Nokia 3810 and the first smartphone. With Starlink, the disruption is the same. With the capability provided in Starlink antenna, you can receive 300mb/s with 30ms delay. If I look at the traditional Eutelsat network to get 300mb/s I have to pay $500 per mb/s or $150,000.

For example, if TF1 or France 24 want to report 1mb/s, $500/month with Starlink costs $20,000-$30,000. Since the Starlink antenna can be installed by anyone, the fault is also in the equipment.

If you’re sending a kit to Niger, you don’t need to fly a highly skilled engineer to install it and organize a secure hotel for two days in Niamey. Starlink antenna installation will be done remotely or through Smartphone “remote monitoring” solutions that will allow a person to remotely monitor their antennas.

Remember, Europe started 10 years ago, they wanted to cover the white ribbons, the areas not covered in France. Eutelsat launched the KA-SAT satellite for the Tooway service. They sold 300 or 400 thousand terminals in 10 years. Starlink activated one million sets in one year. And all this with the power of Eutelsat, with state funds, etc. Starlink has produced one million receiver terminals, which will be launched at the end of December 2022. That says it all.

What about competition with fiber?

Fiber and satellite, both can be combined. You have to protect these networks, but what do you do with the fiber behind it? If finished in copper, no interest. In Africa you can pull all the fiber you want, some countries like Ethiopia dig the fiber to make fishing nets. You dig a km, you make fishing nets km² (km²). I’m talking about fiber from city center connectors to the countryside. To maintain these networks, police should be deployed every 500 m.

Coverage with Starlink is north pole, south pole, north route for all freighters wanting to go from Europe to Japan, and they fill all current satellites covering only 70°N and 70°S. Everything above, for example Tronheim in Norway, is not covered.

Now you can be right in the middle of La Selva in Costa Rica. You need 100m2 of sky space between two trees to shoot satellites from the starlink network.

Facebook, Google tried to launch satellites by pulling fiber. Facebook tried launching solar gliders and Google airships, but neither solution worked. Except for Sergey Brin, who invested in SpaceX, they all stopped launching their satellite constellations.

The next person to compete with Musk is Kuiper and Bezos. He has the ability to invest to do the same as Musk, but he has yet to launch any satellites.

The Starlink antenna looks like a Tesla, you can put it in the middle of the Sahara, you kick it, it’s the same. Even an NGO like the Red Cross, which will order between 300-500, looked at such a tool and said, “What could be better?”

The Starlink antenna is IP65, if you leave the modem outside, if it rains like in Lagos, the modem is dead. The modem here is inside the antenna and can then be left outside in the air

What about product adoption among your customers?

I’m going through what I went through with IBM 30 years ago. “Hi, can I have a mother frame? Since I’m no longer with IBM, I haven’t had any calls in 30 years. And there: “Hello, do you have Starlink?”

Now we will be able to sell value-added services because customers are turning to us and are hyper-receptive. Having a Starlink antenna will be a “buzz”.