VOIP Over Satellite Internet: A White Paper from Galaxy Broadband Communications

Voice over IP (VoIP) Over Satellite

A White Paper by Galaxy Broadband Communications Inc. April 2007

Voice over IP or VoIP is fast becoming accepted as a communications platform. The purpose of this paper is to describe the particular challenges with VoIP over satellite, including the inherent latency of satellite connections and their effect on VoIP quality. At Galaxy Broadband we have been involved with VoIP over satellite for many years and understand the unique advantages and disadvantages users of this technology are faced with. We have experimented with various hardware and software configurations and service providers over the years with both success and failure. This paper will provide background of the issues and present our recommendations.

Who Should Consider Using VoIP Over Satellite If you are contemplating purchasing a satellite Internet system just so you can eliminate your telephone company and save $35.00 a month, we suggest you reconsider. Voice over Satellite Internet should be considered as a viable option only if you do not have a reliable wired telephone line. Those in remote areas where cell phone, radiophones, or satellite phones are the only options to communicate with the outside world can benefit from this technology and should seriously evaluate the benefits, including cost savings.

VoIP as a Technology VoIP begins when a regular telephone is connected to a local device called an ATA or VoIP router. This device converts actual sound waves into data packets by way of a process referred to as a codec. Not all codecs are equal, and it?s very important that the user use the right one, especially when using a satellite connection. These packets travel in the same way as data packets to a destination (VoIP Service Provider) where they are converted back from data packets to sound waves for the calling number to hear.

An amusing story we like to tell about VoIP over satellite Internet is about a geologist working at a drilling location in Northern Alberta. Prior to installing his new system, the geologist had to drive several miles to a hilltop to make a cell phone call which was usually hit or miss whether it connected at all. Given his daily billing rate this was an expensive proposition, let alone the inconvenience factor. His newly installed satellite Internet configured for VoIP offered calling from the comfort of his camp but if the connection halted or missed in any way, even a single syllable missing, he would immediately complain and cuss about the technology! Why would he react this way when 99% of his calls were good enough to carry on a conversation? You won?t see him or anyone else tossing a cell phone out the window during frequent ?burps? so why the lack of tolerance in VoIP? The answer lies in a peculiar perception about VoIP created by a combination of expectations in new technology and popular culture.

VoIP over Satellite Internet works, but it?s not perfect. In fact, VoIP is not a perfected technology in itself, let alone the additional complications due to the satellite link. The voice quality can be quite good, often better than a cell phone call, but it is definitely not toll quality to most modern terrestrial telephone networks.

Satellite Latency and its Affect on VoIP Latency is the term that describes the time it takes to get a packet to its destination. It is usually expressed in milliseconds, or ms. Since the satellites are located 23,000 miles above the equator, and satellite signals travel at the speed of light, this journey takes approximately 540 ms. You then add on the latency of the various Internet hops and servers plus the VoIP provider?s network to end with a total latency in the range of 650 ms to 700ms or more depending on the state of the Internet itself. Another contributing factor could be the quality of your satellite signal which may cause packets to be resent. This latency is heard as a delay between the sender and the receiving ear. Users of VoIP over satellite need to learn how to communicate with this inherent latency much like the older press-to-talk radio phones. Further, the delay requires the users to be patient and refrain from interrupting the caller.

VoIP on the Ground Even using terrestrial low latency connections, VoIP is still facing challenges due to the multiple hops and connections of the Internet itself. The technology is good, and likely getting better, but still not perfect.

Shared Networks over Satellite Satellite Service Providers offer service plans in two major categories. The lowest price group are referred to as best effort networks designed for general Internet access for a typical home, farm, or small business with web surfing and email the primary uses. The second category are commercial grade connectivity plans with Quality of Service. Quality of Service or QoS is an industry term for networks that offer end users specific optimization and performance assurances and tend to be closely managed.

Both of theses network types are shared networks meaning the available bandwidth is shared among all users. Virtually all Internet access providers including cable and DSL share their bandwidth with multiple users, but since satellite space is much more expensive than local wires, the satellite services tend to have more users to share the cost. The price is a good indication of the number of users sharing the available bandwidth. Given a similar speed offering, the lower the price the more users share the available space. Overloaded networks will result in fluctuating performance.

?Best Effort Plans? Networks As the term implies, packets sent and received arrive at their respective destinations at the earliest possible time depending upon the traffic. No users or particular applications receive priority. All home or small office Service Plans offered by virtually all internet access service providers on satellite or terrestrial are ?best effort?. The price per month is a good indicator as to the number of users allowed on the network as the more on, the lower the cost to all. This results in fluctuating speeds depending upon the time of day. Peak times like evenings or after school gets out tend to have more users on the network as compared to early in the morning. If a VoIP user is conducting a conversation during congested periods, the voice packets will slow or drop resulting in missed syllables.

So, given the need for more users to share in the overall cost of the network itself and the additional latency of the connection itself, VoIP over best effort satellite networks will encounter performance problems.

QoS Networks Think of a Best Effort plan (above) as a freeway with congested traffic where traffic stops and starts according to the number of cars trying to drive on the road at the same time. If the freeway had a priority lane (an HOV or high occupancy lane is an example in some cities) or an open lane that only some cars were entitled to travel on, these cars would travel faster without congestion because the lane is open. This is the benefit of a QoS Service Plan on a managed network. Time sensitive traffic can be prioritized to reach its destination sooner and without starts and stops. However, this comes with an added cost.

For end users needing VoIP over satellite Internet to work consistently well a QoS managed network that specifically prioritizes voice packets is required.

Minimum Connection Speed The codec used by the VoIP provider is the key determining factor on connection speed for VoIP to work consistently well. Most big name VoIP providers that sell primarily to terrestrial cable and DSL customers are designed to work without the latency of satellite. These services don?t work well on satellite and tend to use codec that need a higher minimum bandwidth. Satellite service providers use codecs that require 30 kbps or less to function well. It is important that the end user works with their satellite service provider to insure the VoIP router or ATA device is configured with the correct codec for satellite.

The Importance of a Properly Installed Antenna on Performance Most people today are familiar with satellite TV which is a one-way service, meaning a satellite TV dish picks up radio signals from 23,000 miles out in space. Satellite Internet not only picks up signals, but it also sends radio signals back to the satellite 23,000 miles out in space! This two-way communication requires a very precise antenna properly mounted so it can hit a receiving dish 20 feet wide on the satellite. Any ?misses? result in lost transmissions so they must be sent again, slowing the speeds. If the user is transmitting a voice packet, these misses result in a lost syllable or two. Data packets lost are rarely discernable but VoIP packets lost can be heard. Using weather proven antennas, well engineered mounting systems, and a professional installation will result in a dish that can consistently send an accurate signal to hit the satellite every time.

911 Calling 911 Service for VoIP providers requires special attention since in many cases, there is no land based telephone line attached to a physical address that emergency responders can go to. It is important to consider the ramifications of this before deciding on VoIP, and with the added mobility of satellite, it becomes more of an issue. Most VoIP service providers have specific 911 Service solutions that may include a call center equipped with a database of last known location but the end user is responsible to keep this updated.

Summary Voice over IP over Satellite Internet works but the degree that the end user is generally satisfied with the service will depend entirely upon the quality of the satellite service and the connection itself. QoS networks will work best and offer consistent quality. Low end consumer service plans will not, as a rule, perform adequately. That said, the expectations of Voice over IP over Satellite need to be thoroughly discussed with professionals in advance of the buying decision to avoid disappointment as described in the story of the Alberta geologist.

Rick Hodgkinson President & CEO of Galaxy Broadband Communications was one of Canada?s satellite pioneers. He was one of the very first to introduce satellite communications technologies for voice, data, and entertainment to the oil & gas industry beginning in Northern Alberta in 1981 and has evolved to the national stage with the formation of Galaxy Satellite in 1992 and later with Galaxy Broadband, both leading companies in the Canadian satellite industry. Galaxy has grown to be one of the key providers of Broadband Satellite Communications to both consumers and businesses in Canada. http://www.galaxybroadband.ca

Satellite Internet for Hawaii Residents

The first benefit offered by satellite internet Hawaii can take advantage of is that it is a great tourist attraction. Hotels, conference centers, shopping districts, and activity centers can offer satellite internet service to its customers as a way to both draw in patrons and as a way to help travelers stay connected to their homes and businesses. Hotels and conference centers can also improve their public image by offering satellite internet connection to conference hosts. This will help them to access files and broadband broadcasts faster and with better quality results that DSL or dial up connections. This type of connection will also allow them to offer real time interactive internet teleconferences and public discussion panels.

The second group of benefits offered by satellite internet Hawaii residents can take advantage of is its local applications. Primary and secondary educational institutions can utilize high speed satellite internet access for research, downloading up-to-date curriculum and teaching materials as well as providing a great source for the professional development of their staff. Local businesses can also benefit from satellite internet. They can utilize its advantages just like mainland businesses do for mobility and fast access to information, files and data. Finally local residents of HI can utilize satellite internet for entertainment purposes.

While there are obvious advantages for using satellite internet Hawaii residents will probably have a difficult time finding a local or national service provider. This is because most of the well known service providers currently don?t offer services to Hawaii, or to parts of Hawaii. However, people in Kauai, Maui, Honolulu, the big island, or any other area of this state can find satellite internet service if they look at alternative satellite internet companies like SKYFX. Local internet and satellite companies may also offer local satellite internet service.

In the market for a satellite internet provider? Nationwide Satellite Solutions is your provider of HughesNet internet services as well a great resource that will answer any questions you have. Find out if it available in your area. For more on satellite technology visit the online resource directory.

Will EVDO Knock Satellite Internet Out of the Park?

2007 will be the year that Cell phone providers like Sprint, Alltel and Verizon push strong into Suburban and close-in Rural territory staked out by Satellite Internet operators and attempt to take market share away. Will they succeed?

When EVDO Revision A (and soon thereafter Rev B) comes out in Q3 2007, there will be a full blown skirmish between Cell operators and the Satellite Internet industry for available consumer and business internet accounts. The territories they are trying to claim are the areas where concentration of homes and business is great enough to build out advanced cell service, but not great enough for terrestrial providers like cable and dsl. These suburban and rural areas have historically been the territory for Satellite operators and some adventuresome WiFi businesses.

Current Status:

With the current levels of cell service available (EVDO rev.0), cell operators are taking a fair amount of business away from satellite operators in fringe suburban areas....why?.... younger users who want to stream video, trade music and video, play internet games and not have any limitations on usage. So far, the cell operators are filling the bill for about $50 or so for the "Aircard" and charging about $59 per mo. for high speed internet....well, sort of.

The speeds on most EVDO plans are about 400-800 kbps download and around 200 kbps upload. Much higher speeds are promised when Revisions A and B come in to play later this year and beyond. Latency is around 200-350 ms - 50% lower or more than a satellite connection. This latency allows gaming without too many bumps along the way. For those who have been experiencing oppressive limitations from the satellite operators, it seems like heaven....but for how long?

Some of the providers already have a limit of usage each month and it's pretty restrictive (as low as 4GB per month - lower than the satellite operators are assessing). There is no decent data to report on what happens when the network begins to "load up" with users. I was in Denver's airport during a recent snow storm and the EVDO service was non-existent until you were several miles from the airport.....so it's not perfect, by any means. I personally believe that the cell operators are going to learn the same lessons that satellite internet operators have learned........bandwidth is expensive! You can lure people in with attractive prices and speeds, but when you can't maintain those speeds as the network loads up, you just become another one of those lying, cheating, false advertising no good internet providers that we have too many of already! Just kidding........it's not easy to balance a high speed internet network in this day and time.

Future:

When cell operators build out and offer Rev B. EVDO high speed internet service (about 2 years out), the landscape for service will be incredibly competitive. City, suburban and rural individuals and companies will have a lot of choices and the providers with foresight and innovation will be the one's to survive. It should be good for the consumer!

High Speed Satellite Internet

The latest addition to the list of newer and faster Internet accessing techniques is satellite Internet. Satellite Internet is the technology to connect to the World Wide Web though a satellite orbiting the earth. The data signals are exchanged between the host computer, ISP source and satellite.

Satellite Internet services are primarily of two types: one way and two way. In one-way satellite service, information can be downloaded via the satellite at a very high speed, but uploading is done via a regular modem. Two-way satellite Internet service supports both downloading as well as uploading of information. As uploading information through satellites may take slightly longer, it is advisable not to use this technology for applications which require fast, synchronous data transfer.

Using this service requires the installation of a dish at the user's location. Though expensive, this technology is extensively used in areas where terrestrial access to Internet is not viable, especially in sea vessels. The prime advantages of satellite Internet include: it can be used almost anywhere, it is fast, it offers 2-way connection speeds and unlimited access, and it is available in various packages to suit the user's needs.

Satellite Internet is also highly reliable. There are few incidences of a connection drop down while processing critical transactions via the net. Although a satellite connection facilitates fast Internet access, it is comparatively slower than other broadband technologies due to the long distance which the data has to travel. Its speed cannot be enhanced beyond a limit, while other services like DSL or Cable can attain much higher speeds.

However, without any wires or cables required, this technology is a sought-after option for far-off locations or sea vessels, as its reach is global. Various countries offer different methodologies to use this technology, depending upon the location of the satellite. Extremely reliable and safe, with newer and better improvisations in the pipeline, this technology is constantly improving.

High Speed Internet provides detailed information on High Speed Internet, High Speed Internet Access, High Speed Internet Services, High Speed Satellite Internet and more. High Speed Internet is affiliated with Satellite Internet Access.

Satellite Internet Exchange

A study conducted by ?The Economist? magazine, showed a strong correlation between the price of a ?Big Mac? in a country and it?s cost of living. The cost of living?rent, consumer goods, food, entertainment (www.ticketnest.com) is usually significantly higher in the US than in the developing world(and so is the price of a ?Big Mac?). However, ?Big Mac? index notwithstanding, the price of internet bandwidth in the third world is off the charts. As a point of comparison, a 1 Mbit/sec ADSL costs about 20 dollar for a home user in the US, and about 800 dollars in Pakistan. Needless to say, there is a strong need for a reduction in cost and improvement of quality of service.

The issue with the developing countries is the lack of infrastructure. Our case study of Pakistan showed that all of Pakistan has only one backbone fiber line, resulting in bottlenecks. The lack of redundancy has its costs?in July 2005 the fiber wire got severed resulting in massive outages. The back up satellite connection was hardly a solace to the burgeoning IT industry of Pakistan.

A significant percentage of traffic in Pakistan is domestic, but it?s routed through servers in the US and Europe. A trace route from one Pakistan ISP to another yields a shocking pattern?packets traveling from Pakistan to UK, US, Singapore and back to Pakistan. The situation is exacerbated in the case of fiber failures, when the traffic gets routed over multiple satellite hops. The latency is about 700 milliseconds/hop (or about 1.5 seconds for every transaction). This not only adds latency, needlessly raising costs but chokes the connection slowing down genuine Pakistan to international traffic.

Internet Exchange Point is a facility to allow the exchange of traffic between multiple ISP?s. In general the ISP?s have to pay to the tier-1 providers or the governing body(say Pakistan Telecom Authority) for the carriage of traffic. Even if the traffic is local, without the Exchange Point, the traffic is routed over the international internet.

The peering arrangement allows local ISPs to exchange traffic on a barter basis, rather than on a cash basis?net neutrality being the key. Such arrangements bypass ITU protocol, regarding revenue sharing and allow net lower cost to all the ISP participants. The exchange point essentially allows the ISP?s to segment the traffic, according to the destination and by pass the tier-1 providers. Results are dramatically lower cost and lower latency.

The entrenched incumbents in developing countries(such as Pakistan) have the most to lose from domestic exchange of traffic and are the biggest impediments to the adoption. The governments of such countries also have a vested interest in supporting the monopoly of Telecom companies, given the revenues and taxes received. The larger ISP?s also have a vested interest in using high cost of connectivity to hasten the exit of smaller or less capitalized players through attrition.

In conclusion, to reap advantage of internet exchange points, the telecom companies have to overcome their monopolistic ways and there has to be an effort to make a neutral body responsible for the traffic sharing facilities. The lower cost of internet will actually foster overall growth in overall traffic, which will compensate the monopolies? initial loss of international traffic.

For more information about Satellite Internet Exchange visit: http://www.nayasat.com/satellite-internet-exchange.html

A flower arrangement reflects our thought processes--from simplistic to subtly complex. Jill Murtha hosts http://www.classicalmesh.com and expresses her passion for flowers, their arrangement through writing and discussion. She works for For Less Corporation at http://www.ixs.net