Sunset satellite internet. The Rostelecom structure launched satellite communications under the SenSat brand

I was absolutely sure that ordinary users had not used satellite Internet for a long time. What for? I’ve lived all my life in a small town and we have “a lot of different things” on the Internet at quite affordable prices. They throw the wire into the apartment and that’s it. And I remember what the one-way Internet was like. It certainly looked “show-off” - a dish, a satellite! Just like in science fiction films. But essentially difficult to set up, expensive to purchase and not very convenient to use.

However, recently, having traveled quite actively across the vast expanses of our country, I understand that cities are now not a panacea. Many, including my friends, strive to live outside the city in a private house. There are some people who successfully work remotely and not even near large cities. There are people with incomes who consciously choose “detached corners” for themselves, but at the same time want to be “online”. There is no talk of any “wire” here, and mobile operators have realized for some time that base stations specifically for Internet service do not pay for themselves in sparsely populated areas and are gradually dismantling them.

So what? Are we burying satellite internet too early? Let's find out how modern Internet works from satellite.

In general, there are two ways to organize satellite Internet. One of them can be called “symmetrical,” in which satellite channels are used both to transmit information to the Internet and to receive information from the Internet. With another - “asymmetric” - method of access, the satellite channel is used only to receive information from the Internet, and for transmission a separate “terrestrial” channel is needed - that is, at least some way to get to the Internet must already be available.

As you remember, the second method was popular among private owners at one time due to its relative cheapness (since the first was simply indecently expensive), but due to its inconveniences it simply became obsolete.

But the option of a “symmetrical” connection with a satellite has developed and become affordable and difficult to set up.

Since I recently attended the presentation of a new brand of satellite Internet from the Federal satellite communications operator RTCOMM in the Belgorod region SenSat, let’s use its example to look at how modern satellite Internet communications work.

For those interested, you can watch the video version of this event:

And we will continue to understand how satellite Internet works.

The orbit of telecommunications geostationary satellites is located above the Earth's equator. The period of revolution of a satellite in this orbit is strictly equal to the period of revolution of the Earth around its axis (astronomical day), therefore each satellite is always located above the same point of the equator. The longitude of this point corresponds to the “orbital position” of the satellite and is expressed in degrees eastern or western longitude (for satellites “operating” on the territory of Russia - mainly eastern). From any place on Earth, each satellite is always visible from the same angle, so it is enough to point the antenna at it once, and it will always receive a signal from it.

Satellites broadcasting to Russia operate in the C and Ku bands. C - lower frequency range, requiring larger diameter antennas, more expensive and bulky converter amplifiers, but less “sensitive” to signal attenuation in poor atmospheric conditions (rain, snow, fog, etc.). Ku is a higher frequency range that allows the use of smaller diameter antennas and more compact and cheaper converters, but is more attenuated when passing through the atmosphere.

Most satellite Internet operators operate in the Ku-band, but there are also those who operate in the C-band. The development of an even higher-frequency Ka-band in Russia is just beginning and here is one of the sensations (by the way, the name SenSat is generally formed by the words sensation (sensation) and satellite (satellite)) in 2016, PTKOOM began providing broadband Internet access services in the Ka-band.

The satellite “hangs” at an altitude of about 32 thousand km. and from it one can see vast areas from which it can receive and to which it can transmit a signal. For comparison, here are the most popular satellite operators in Russia and their coverage area:

Ka-Sat coverage area:

KiteNet Coverage Area

Tricolor Internet coverage area

SenSat coverage area

As we can see, the federal satellite communications operator RTCOMM really covers the entire territory of the country with a signal, unlike other operators.

Each operator providing services via satellite is allocated a so-called “satellite resource” - a frequency band in which it can transmit its signal. In fact, two bands are distinguished, “separated” in frequency - in one the signal is transmitted “from the Earth to the satellite”, in the other the satellite transmits this signal back to the Earth. If the satellite service is “unidirectional” (TV broadcasting, asymmetric Internet access, etc.), then the subscriber is only interested in the band in which the signal is transmitted from the satellite to the Earth (the so-called “direct channel”, from the operator to the subscriber). With symmetric Internet access, the operator allocates part of its satellite resource to subscribers and for organizing a “reverse channel” - from the subscriber to the operator.

A satellite operator can use its carrier to transmit different services simultaneously. Some operators provide part of their carrier to other companies. As a result, completely heterogeneous traffic can be transmitted on one carrier - television and radio broadcasting, Internet access, private data networks, multicast information, etc. It may also be that several Internet providers operate on the same carrier.

The subscriber needs to select from the entire information flow transmitted in the carrier only those data that relate to the service he needs. For this purpose, a special sign is used, called PID (program ID, or “program identifier”). On one receiver you can specify several different PIDs and receive several different services simultaneously - for example, Internet traffic and multicast.

We figured out how the signal is transmitted from the satellite to the subscriber and back. Where does the Internet come from on the satellite?

After the subscriber is connected to the satellite network and “identified” in it, it is necessary to provide him with access to the Internet. Each subscriber is identified on the Internet by his IP address, which marks the information “outgoing” from him. All information from the Internet intended for the subscriber is sent to the same address.

For symmetric satellite access, as for “traditional” terrestrial networks, where access is carried out through a single connection, the route in the operator’s network is always known and predictable, so there is no need to use complex routing schemes and IP address allocation. The operator simply assigns a symmetric access subscriber a dedicated address or set of addresses, usually from its internal network, but possibly from the “external” Internet address space.

Modern technologies have led to the fact that the speed of satellite Internet has become comparable to the speed of the average terrestrial Internet user. If a subscriber usually chooses 5-10 Mb/s as a minimum when connecting, then 30-40 Mb/s is already a speed for an advanced user who understands what he needs. SenSat is a high-speed satellite Internet and provides connections at speeds of up to 45 Mb/s.

A feature of the satellite channel is a rather large delay in signal propagation - the satellite is far away, and radio waves travel at the speed of light. It only takes about 250 ms for radio waves to travel from the operator to the satellite and from the satellite to the subscriber. In the case of symmetric Internet access, the same delay occurs on the “request” channel. For example, satellite Internet from SenSat has a delay of 600 ms. which, of course, will not give you the opportunity to play online shooters and RPGs, but will not in any way affect surfing the Internet and other activities there.

As I already mentioned, the “asymmetrical” connection option was popular earlier due to the relatively inexpensive equipment compared to the “symmetrical” option. However, technology does not stand still and now price offers for a full-fledged “symmetrical” connection option look quite attractive.

This set of equipment will now cost 29,990 rubles. Of course, not everyone immediately decides to purchase equipment at this price. Therefore, we did not forget about the offer to RENT equipment with a monthly payment. You can try everything, test it, and understand how convenient it is in this particular geographical location.

It is clear that all this is designed for conditions where any other option for connecting to the Internet is simply impossible. However, SenSat equipment is designed in such a way that literally every blonde can assemble and configure it. Did you notice that I didn't put this expression in brackets? And all because I saw with my own eyes how one charming blonde, seeing such a kit for the first time, was able to set up satellite Internet.

That's how it was.

Look how happy everyone was when they had the opportunity to set up communication with the satellite with their own hands.

Photo 2.

The first day we had to choose which direction to orient the antenna in general. And for this, SenSat has a special application for smartphones, by downloading which you can see in a standard way what parameters to configure our antenna with.

This is what my smartphone showed:

Well, let's get to work. For the purity of the experiment, the men do not help, although of course they did not force me to install the antenna itself on the mount. The purpose of the experiment is to check whether the settings and settings are complex.

Photo 4.

Now you need to install the bar.

Photo 5.

You can look at three things in the world forever: flowing water, burning fire and how others work...

Photo 6.

So we installed the boom and the converter, then we launch an application on the computer that shows us whether the satellite is caught or not. There is a special buzzer on the antenna itself that starts beeping when the antenna is aligned as accurately as possible. The application on the computer also shows the maximum signal - that means that’s it, the installation is complete. Nothing more is needed.

Photo 7.

You can see in your eyes that it’s very nice when others do something for you. But for the cameraman in the background, I’ll most likely ruin the whole picture.

Photo 8.

So, the participants of the experiment coped with everything perfectly and the Director of Regional Telesystems LLC Dmitry Romanenko tells who they are counting on as consumers of the SenSat satellite Internet service

Photo 9.

If anyone remembers, about a year ago the EGAIS system and online receipts came into effect, which involves connecting all stores selling alcohol to the Internet and using online cash registers also connected to the Internet. And stores, as you understand, in our country can be located in places without traditional access to the Internet. There are also various areas of small and medium-sized businesses for which the presence of the Internet is quite critical for business success, but the location of the business is far from the city limits.

Photo 10.

Again, simply the level of residence of the population with an average income has already gone beyond the city limits. And for a modern person it is now very difficult without the Internet, even in everyday life. Social networks, mail, instant messengers and video chats have become an integral part of our lives.

I also liked the example that was given at this event. One of the organizations was either conducting a presentation of equipment in the field, or organizing a corporate holiday event in nature - there they deployed an antenna and distributed access to Wi-Fi to everyone present. Modern, original, useful.

Photo 11.

But Ilya Vasilyev, head of the department for working with the mass segment, tells us about the pricing policy. Yes, from the expression on the speaker’s face you probably realized that this is not very cheap compared to wired Internet. But there are objective reasons for this.

Photo 12.

However, this is very attractive in comparison with other satellite Internet operators given the corresponding indicators and, at a minimum, looks inaccessible in the current economic realities of our country.

What can you say about the tariffs? Available?

Well, a cookie for everyone...

Photo 13.

Full size photo on my website -

For individuals and small businesses.

2018: Availability in the Kurgan region

On October 5, 2018, RTCOMM officially introduced the SenSat trademark in Kurgan. During the press event, journalists and bloggers learned about the operator’s plans for developing the service, current tariffs and conditions for connecting users. In addition, RTCOMM representatives revealed details about the choice of name for the brand, its target audience and methods of promotion on the market.

Alexander Palamarchuk, head of the communications department of the Department of Industry, Transport, Communications and Energy of the Kurgan Region, who attended the event as a guest expert, welcomed the emergence of another Internet access service provider in the Trans-Ural region, whose activities can contribute to improving the quality of life of the population.

The head of the department for working with the mass segment of the RTCOMM group of companies, Ilya Vasiliev, said that the target audience of TM SenSat is homeowners in suburban and suburban areas - where there is no developed optical infrastructure.

In the Kurgan region, connection services are provided by the official SenSat dealer - individual entrepreneur A.N. Kungurov.

Delivery of SenSat high-speed satellite Internet connection kits is carried out at the end user's expense at the rates of the selected delivery service - either independently or by an official dealer, depending on the client's decision.

2017: Availability in Vladivostok

In March 2017, RTCOMM officially presented in Vladivostok a trademark designed to connect high-speed satellite Internet services for individuals and small businesses.

The target audience of TM SenSat is the active adult solvent population of private suburban and suburban residential areas where there is no developed optical infrastructure:

“There are still many hard-to-reach and simply remote regions not covered by cellular communication networks in our country; fiber optics are not available everywhere. At the same time, there is also a steady increase in the development of both individual and small-apartment housing, populated by potential users of satellite Internet, the company commented. - At the same time, the service of providing Internet access using satellite Ka-band is still very little known to consumers. Our strategy for introducing the new SenSat brand to the market is primarily aimed at reaching the widest possible segment of potential customers and informing them about new opportunities for connecting high-speed satellite Internet in their private home.”

The high-speed satellite Internet service is provided under the SenSat trademark throughout the coverage area of ​​the Express-AM5, Express-AM6 and AMU-1 spacecraft. It is available for connection to all residents of Russia from Kaliningrad to Kamchatka on favorable terms - from 670 rubles per month at a speed of up to 45 Mbit/s on terms of purchase or rental.

The company RTKomm.ru, a subsidiary of the state operator Rostelecom, begins to provide satellite Internet access to individuals under the SenSat brand. Previously, it provided this service only to corporate clients and government agencies

Photo: Alexander Zamaraev / Lori

The RTKomm.ru company (100% owned by Rostelecom) is launching a new SenSat brand, under which it will provide high-speed satellite Internet access services for individuals and small businesses, the company said in a message received by RBC. The company already provides this service to corporate clients.

To connect to it, an individual needs to purchase a set of equipment for receiving a satellite signal (from 29.99 thousand rubles) or rent it (from 750 rubles per month). The cost of Internet access will be from 670 rubles. per month. This amount includes 2.2 GB of traffic.

The company uses the resources of the Express-AM5, Express-AM6, and Express-AMU1 spacecraft. According to information on the SenSat website, the coverage area includes the entire Russian territory, except for the Magadan region, the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, part of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), part of the Krasnoyarsk Territory and part of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug.

Satellites are not only for government agencies

According to the general director of TMT Consulting, Konstantin Ankilov, in 2016 the volume of the satellite communications market in Russia exceeded 14 billion rubles, of which 97% accounted for the corporate sector and the public sector. “The market for private users has begun to develop, including thanks to the launch of satellites operating in the new frequency range,” Ankilov noted. According to him, there are now over 30 satellite operators operating in Russia. Several companies provide services to individuals, the largest of which are RuSat, AltegroSky, EuroCom and KB Iskra.

RTKomm.ru representative Alexey Pentegov did not disclose to RBC the amount of investment in the project, but explained that it consisted of renting additional capacity on satellites, costs for creating a technical solution, information systems, purchasing equipment and marketing analytics. The company does not disclose plans for the volume of its subscriber base in its new segment. At the same time, RBC’s interlocutor points to “the significant capacity of the mass segment of satellite Internet,” which the company considers “as a growth point for business.”

Pentegov explains the current low demand for satellite communications by low awareness of users about the service. “Satellite Internet is still perceived as slow and expensive. But with the opening of a new frequency range and the start of commercial operation of Internet access services with its help, the opposite can be said,” Pentegov insists.

The access speed in the SenSat network is, according to him, up to 45 Mbit/s.

At the same time, RTKomm.ru does not intend to compete with companies providing Internet access via fiber-optic networks. “SenSat begins where the stable service of alternative telecom operators ends. Our service will be most relevant primarily in territories with poorly developed telecommunications infrastructure, and there are still plenty of them,” emphasized Alexey Pentegov.

According to TMT Consulting, the penetration level of broadband Internet access in Russia at the end of 2016 was 56%. According to the calculations of Konstantin Ankilov, in Russia there are now about 7 million cottages and country houses with the possibility of seasonal residence - their owners can be potential consumers of satellite communications. “But about half of them have or will soon have the ability to connect to wired Internet,” the expert says. “The remaining users do not always have the need and financial ability to connect to satellite Internet and will be content with the services of mobile operators.”

With the equipment prices stated by RTKomm.ru, the company can count on “several tens of thousands of subscribers” and only under the condition of very active marketing support, adds Ankilov.

“Rostelecom is correctly entering new segments, given that in the corporate segment and government agencies, revenues from communication services have practically stopped growing,” notes Sergey Pekhterev, head of the department for working with individuals at AltegroSky. The new project will not require significant additional investments from RTKomm.ru, he believes. The bulk of the costs will be for the purchase of equipment sets for receiving satellite signals, which the operator will then sell or lease to subscribers.

Rostelecom is the largest player in the Russian broadband Internet access market among individuals. At the end of 2016, the company occupied 37% of this market both in terms of the number of subscribers and revenue. Revenues from Rostelecom's traditional fixed-line telephony services are declining, and the company is compensating for this by growing digital and content services, which include broadband Internet access, television, additional and cloud services, etc.