Tag Archives: INS

Alternatives to GPS?

The FCC plans to hold a vote in April to consider alternatives to GPS, the U.S. location technology. The aviation industry has reported an increase in GPS spoofing, where a fake GPS signal shows a pilot the wrong location of a plane. GPS spoofing has been common around conflict zones, but airlines are reporting it happening in other places.

There are national security concerns because GPS is now used extensively by airlines, shipping, the military, and by the public for a wide range of uses. There is growing fear of the negative impact of something going wrong with GPS due to malicious attacks, technical malfunctions, or natural phenomenon like solar flares.

GPS technology was developed by the U.S. and is currently controlled by the U.S. Space Force. The technology was first designed in 1973 and became fully functional when a constellation of 24 satellites was in place in 1993. The U.S. government first made GPS available for civilian uses after Korean Air Lines Flight 007 was shot down in 1983 when it entered Russian air space. Over time, the government allowed wider use of GPS, and the technology is familiar to everybody who uses it as the basis for driving directions.

We’ve already begun to modernize the GPS network. There are currently 18 new GPS satellites in orbit that use the L5 frequency band that can provide accuracy for functions like surveying within 2 centimeters. The new satellite constellation will be completed in 2024 when it reaches 24 satellites.

GPS is not the only location network in the world. Russia has a GLONASS network, China a BeiDou network, and the European Union operates its Galileo locating network.

The purpose of GPS is supply geolocation information and the time anywhere on earth. Folks in the telecom business are familiar with GPS because we use it to mark the location of network outdoor components. GPS can help to lead a technician directly to the source of a network problem.

The FCC wants to open an exploration into other locating technologies so that we aren’t dependent on the GPS satellites. There are alternatives to GPS that can be explored, and it seems likely that a second locating system would be used in conjunction with GPS so that there wouldn’t be a single network providing the service. Some of the alternate technologies that might be considered include:

  • GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System). LORAN (Long Range Navigation) technology is already used in conjunction with current GPS. This is a land-based network that use low-frequency radios that allow a calculation of position. Today LORAN supplements GPS in areas where reception is poor, and it can enhance accuracy where GPS is being used. Some are proposing that an updated eLORAN network be built as more extensive alternative to GPS. The downside is the cost of build a large numbers of LORAN towers around the world.
  • INS (Inertial Navigation System) is a self-contained system that keeps track of the location of an INS device through continuous motion tracking – the device constantly calculates where it is at. The technology is already used today in airplanes, ships, and by the military. The devices are fairly expensive but could become more affordable with mass production. The downside is what is called sensor drift where a device has to occasionally be recalibrated by connecting to GPS or another location system.
  • Quantum Clocks are still in the research and development phase but hold promise for timekeeping and location calculations. Quantum clocks are far more accurate than the atomic clock that is currently used as our time standard. The lab devices today are complex, and the challenge to make this into a usable technology is miniaturization and mass production.

Finally, Cable TV in the Cloud

Cloud_computing_icon_svgThere is finally a cable TV solution for small cable providers that does not require them to own and operate their own headend. In fact, this new solution doesn’t even require them to be a regulated cable company.

The solution is provided by Skitter TV. Skitter TV was started by Skitter Inc. based in Atlanta, Georgia and headed by Robert Saunders, one of the pioneers of IPTV. The company has developed proprietary cable hardware and software that is far less costly than other cable headends.

Skitter TV has been operating for a few years as a sort of a cooperative, and is owned by Skitter Inc. and a number of independent telephone companies. The company’s cable model for the last few years was to come to a small carrier that offers cable TV and to supplant the incumbent product with Skitter TV. Most small cable operators are losing money on their cable product. Skitter TV becomes the cable provider of record and then shares profits with the local provider, which guarantees a small profit on cable.

But Skitter TV just upped their game and has partnered with Iowa Network Services (INS) to bring Skitter TV to more carriers for a lower cost. INS is a consortium of independent telephone companies in Iowa and the company owns a substantial middle-mile fiber network as well as provides a number of services to members.

The latest move takes advantage of the INS fiber network and includes plans to interconnect to other telco-owned fiber networks throughout the country. This will allow companies with access to these other fiber networks to get their cable signal from the INS headend. The same economic model still holds and Skitter will offer a revenue share with local providers, who get to disconnect their existing losing cable business.

There are a few key issues to consider for a small provider looking at this opportunity. The primary one is the cost of transport needed to connect to Skitter and INS. It’s likely that companies that can get a connection to one of the other statewide networks can get this transport for a reasonable cost. But providers outside of those networks need to consider the transport costs in looking at the opportunity.

I’ve looked closely at Skitter TV and it’s a very interesting product offering. They don’t have as many standard network channels as the large urban cable systems, and this helps to hold down the costs of providing the service. But Skitter has made up for a smaller line-up by bringing a large number of non-traditional channels to their line-up. They also have created channels for many of the popular online services. Overall the Skitter lineup is probably an improvement in rural markets and might even be an interesting alternative in urban markets.

One interesting option that Skitter brings is the possibility of offering a cord cutter package that includes local network channels plus a wide array of non-traditional programming. The Skitter cord cutter programming looks to be one of the more robust non-traditional packages on the market.

Customers can connect to Skitter TV using a Roku box, which is cheaper than traditional settop boxes. But Skitter also can support most traditional IPTV settop boxes that providers already have deployed.

Any small cable provider who is losing money on cable TV ought to take a look at this alternative. Even if transport costs look to be a barrier, Skitter TV is often willing to bring their own headend into a market if the numbers look attractive to them.

I think that Skitter TV will do well in the telco and IPTV cable markets because it’s become nearly impossible for a small provider to be profitable on the cable product. It’s a lot more sensible for a provider to partner with Skitter and get a guaranteed small positive margin from cable customers than to continue to bleed cash on the business line. Other than having to provide settop boxes, the Skitter partnership gets companies out of the headend, hardware, and middleware business, taking a lot of pressure off capital budgets.