Background

Most large international banks discovered long ago the benefits of satellite, but many domestic firms still rely on a combination of clear channel circuits, frame relay and Tier 1 IP access.

With the exception of millions of daily merchant-originated debit and credit card transactions, satellite services are not widely used today in the North American financial services sector.

The Need for Broadband

The rapid growth of Web-based enterprise software has pushed banks into uncharted territory. Legacy systems required little more than ISDN or 64 kbps frame relay circuits. However, new Web-based teller, account, loan and distance learning systems require significant increases in bandwidth to function properly. Consequently, banks have entered the broadband market.

Many existing broadband technologies are simply not appropriate for banks with widely distributed branch operations. In some cases, clear channel fiber T1 and frame relay circuits are not available due to the location of a particular branch. In other cases, the cost and reliability of such connectivity is unattractive.

The proliferation of DSL and cable-delivered Internet access may be tempting to some, but it is ultimately a public, consumer-grade product and therefore inherently insecure. Many local exchange carriers (LECs) and digital subscriber line (DSL) resellers may not even guarantee throughput for business-class customers.

The Satellite Advantage

Satellite-based technologies offer relief and reliability to banks looking to make the jump to broadband. The financial services sector can and should make wider use of satellite services. Satellite's distinct advantages include:

• Private IP clouds with real-time bandwidth assignments per branch
• Support for 1000s of asymmetrical links in a single private network
• Elimination of terrestrial risks and cuts

Satellite services can genuinely add value to the financial sector's business by enabling banks to utilize the latest bandwidth-hungry applications while remaining cost-competitive with fiber.

The same satellite installation can be configured as a primary or backup connection merely by assigning the appropriate bandwidth. A backup configuration can be upgraded quickly, without any additional installation.

Automated Backup Via Satellite

A satellite-based hot-standby system helps a bank survive a local fiber cut, major cable failure, central office outage or natural disaster with zero downtime. Most terrestrial events have no effect on the ability of the satellite to transmit and receive.

The satellite router is connected to the local branch gateway router and can be pre-configured via conventional IP addressing to automatically carry fail-over traffic in the event of an interruption in the primary data path. The service offers an attractive monthly cost, as bandwidth for disaster recovery can be shared across multiple time zones and geographic areas. Banks with large operations across multiple states may further improve ROI by creating a customized, satellite-based disaster recovery IP cloud.

Fixed vs. Mobile

Satellite-based disaster recovery implementations can be accomplished via permanent and mobile installations.

Fixed units utilize one 1.2m antenna installed on a building roof and one indoor satellite router (dimension: 1 rack unit) in a branch LAN room. Mobile units utilize an auto-pointing 1.2m antenna and satellite router. The mobile units are enclosed in transportable, shockproof/weatherproof cases. Mobile units can also be configured for truck/SUV trailers.

Financial services firms interested in maximum ROI from their DR/BCP investments would be well served to consider the advantages of satellite-based technologies.

Steve Barr is responsible for Financial Markets business development at SES AMERICOM, 703-610-1016, email: stephen.barr@ses-americom.com, web: www.ses-americom.com.