Virtual, wireless mannah: a co-opetitive analysis of the broadband satellite industry

The emerging satellite communication constellations differ substantially fr om prior generations or systems. For years, satellite systems have offered broadcast and interactive services, but with major limitations. The new gen eration of services promise to overcome the traditional barriers, such as t erminal weight and size, equipment and service cost, and degree of mobility . Instead, the new systems will provide completely new capabilities which e xpand the flexibility for the user and the range of potential applications. However, the introduction of such a "next-generation" communications syste m is often plagued by difficulties in forecasting market demand, as custome r themselves may not accurately forecast their own needs for such services. Using the concept of "co-opetition" derived from game theory, we propose c oncrete steps which broadband satellite operators can use to foster market growth for these services. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserv ed.