...satellite-based SCADA/M2M opportunities over the long term, albeit via a shifting mix of vertical market demand. While the market for traditional verticals is expected to grow at single-digit levels, emerging verticals are expected to grow impressively over the next decade. Overall, the global satellite SCADA/M2M market is expected to reach $2.7 billion in 2021, growing more than two-fold from today’s $1.2 billion annual revenue base.

The budget picture for the Military, competition in the Oil & Gas sector and some degree of maturation in the Transportation/Cargo market lead to narrowing margins that will likely result in flat revenue growth. However, new opportunities are on the horizon for emerging verticals led by the deployment of renewable energy facilities that in turn drive growth in the Utility sector. The increase in Mining activity should likewise usher in more robust growth over the long term.

“Together, traditional verticals and emerging markets yield dynamics that call for the improvement of core, traditional offerings in order to be competitive while, at the same time, providing experimentation and risk-taking in targeting emerging opportunities,” according to the study’s author Jose Del Rosario, Senior Analyst for NSR.

The market is currently dominated by L-band and is likely to remain the preferred platform over the long term. However, Ku-band has gained inroads in the Transportation/Cargo market and is used more frequently in new verticals, specifically in green energy for the provision of high bandwidth CCTV for security requirements. “Ku-band’s higher ARPU levels and healthy market share in an otherwise predominantly narrowband market is likely to lead to the entrance of HTS, which could change the market in significant ways,” notes Del Rosario.