Mobile Satellite TV To Hit 3M In 2011

By Amy Gilroy -- TWICE, 11/7/2005

Palo Alto, Calif. — The fledgling automotive satellite TV market is off to a promising start, according to a new report by Frost & Sullivan, which expects that 3 million light vehicles on the road will be equipped with satellite TV by 2011 in North America.

Analyst Sandeep Kar said two trends will help fuel the growth of the automotive satellite TV market.The first trend is that North Americans are watching increasingly more TV, and the second is that mobile satellite TV systems are becoming more advanced.

Already the SpeedRay by RaySat offers two-way Internet connection in addition to satellite TV, said Kar, who expects that eventually the satellite TV antenna will also be used for voice over IP telephony, navigation, digital mapping and mobile commerce.

Car companies and car rental companies are also showing interest in the market, with Avis recently announcing that it will offer mobile satellite TV in its Hummer vehicles, and with Cadillac offering it as a dealer-installed option in the Escalade SUV, said Kar.

The industry is hoping to reach price points of $500 to $1,000 per system and antenna weights in the 10- to 15-pound range, said Frost & Sullivan.

In addition, rear-seat entertainment systems are gaining and will be installed in 20 million light vehicles by 2011, said the report.