ANGA Cable/Satellite 2011 Show, Cologne, Germany

[SatelliteAV]

At the ANGA Cable/Satellite show in Cologne, Germany and will post some photos from the floor. The DTV transition in Germany this year has fueled an incredible introduction of new hybrid set top boxes. It is awesome to be at a major show dominating several floors of a convention center with hundreds of booths offering FSS and DTH equipment!

Unlike France, Germany, Belgium, UK, etc. have continuing growth and focus on DTH satellite. Dishes for these markets are typically 90cm and larger and most have at least two LNBFs if not four or five. The new breed of dishes (one meter and larger) are built much more robustly than the typical FTA dishes with twin rail type LNBF support arms. It was amazing to see the growth of larger dishes on almost every German and Belgium home since my last trip to this area six years ago. Very few of these are motorized and most have multiple output LNBFs for multiple rooms and multiple tuner DVRs.

Not much new in LNBF technology at the shoe excluding the continuing marketing deception by most brands offering a .1 or .2NR. A few more brands are offering LNBFs similar in design to our GEOSATpro SL1 and SL2 Bullet LNBFs. These are in widespread use for multi-sat reception with the tightening distances between the satellites. Had a few visits with manfacturers of fiber output LNBFs and do not see the economics for home use, though for commercial systems it offers great advantages.

Receivers are mostly all transitioning to MPEG2/4, but the majority of units at the show are for providers with minimal focus on FTA only STBs. Not to say that the STBs are not strong for non-subscription, but the majority of development is for the IP solutions for the subscription OTT apps such as weather, news, YouTube, Skype, etc. A wide selection of chipsets are in use, but the Broadcom chips appear to be the choice for most subscription STBs. Most STBs are now offering DVR as a standard feature, but unfortunately most continue to only offer USB 2.0 and this will limit the ability to trick play high bandwidth channels. eSata will overcome this, but most broadcast channels in Europe do not have the huge bandwidth that are used in North American backhauls.

I have dozens of photos to post and will get them loaded later today. Enjoy.... Heading back to the show in a few minutes.

 

[AcWxRadar]

That sounds awesome, Brian! I received the word about the show from my AZBox (OpenSat Newsletter).

I would be drooling so much that they would probably kick me out of the show under suspicion of being a rabid dog, Ha Ha.

You mentioned the fiber optic LNBF technology. I am going to differ with you on the impression there. I think it will eventually be very benefical and economical for home use (not currently of course), as it is still in its infancy stage at this time. Too expensive to be practical for home use, but I think it will come and then it will be really sweet!
Looking forward to your pix!

RADAR

 

[mikelib]

LOOK OUT RICK STEVES' EUROPE, HERE COMES BRIAN GOHLS' FTA EUROPE.

 

[zamar23]

Brian,

I read somewhere you were a camera man before getting into sat business - right? And a reporter's strive is still there, its obvious, so may be you should consider dividing your attention between the sat hobby and professional reporting? As to Broadcom chips popularity, Echostar is very active in Europe, so probably not surprising to see its partner's popularity - they indirectly promote each other.

 

[SatelliteAV]

Here is the first batch of photos. I broke into several categories, Cover shots, dishes and install supplies, receivers and meters. Getting a little more vacation in and going site seeing. Will upload more tonight.

 

[SatelliteAV]

Meters

 

[Tron]

Nice pictures, Brian, thanks! Brings back memories of the Satcon/HD World convention in NYC that I attended three years ago. Have you been able to get any sample gadgets?

 

[zamar23]

Satellite TV business seems to be alive and well in Europe, if the Expo can be indicator of that - it costs money to present products to the world, so probably makes sense if they do it. I guess, abundance of free sat channels in Germany is one big stimulus, with internet bandwidth under capacity being the other. Its kind of strange though, why neighboring countries like France and Germany are so different in IPTV status, so may be some government programs are in play.

 

[SatelliteAV]

German Dish Installations.
Notice the majority of installs are for multiple satellites. I am very impressed with the mounts used. Very sturdy and not much chance of failure. Most of the new installs are now using extremely heavy duty dual LNBF arm assemblies without side arms. The German market is very demanding for this design and it is not being used in many other European countries.

 

[AcWxRadar]

German Dish Installations.
Notice the majority of installs are for multiple satellites. I am very impressed with the mounts used. Very sturdy and not much chance of failure. Most of the new installs are now using extremely heavy duty dual LNBF arm assemblies without side arms. The German market is very demanding for this design and it is not being used in many other European countries.

Brian,

Your image (pix) DSC02272.JPG has me puzzled. What are they doing here?

RADAR

 

[classicsat]

Not Ku band I guess, likely terrestrial data.

 

[SatelliteAV]

View attachment 64951
image (pix) DSC02272.JPG has me puzzled. What are they doing here?

The mount of the upper Cassegrain dish was broken.... an example of a dish that is probably free for the asking (like a C-band dish parked on the horizon).

 

[Pixl]

Brian,

I've been to NAB in Las Vegas many times. Your photos could have been shot there, I wouldn't know the difference.
How are you dealing with the different languages? Are you able to interact with the different vendors etc?

Thanks for the Pics and the posts from your adventure.

Jim

 

[Anole]

Nice set of pictures.
Many professional dish installs, but... a few looked like what we SatGuys create. :up

Bring us back a nice receiver, before (a certain new box) takes the market by storm!

 

[zamar23]

Its hard to beat CN IRDs with European counterparts price wise, so I wouldn't expect too many European models coming soon here, based on stripped down FTA programming in North America that seems to be more and more limited, and now fighting for market share with IPTV.

 

[SatelliteAV]

Brian,

I've been to NAB in Las Vegas many times. Your photos could have been shot there, I wouldn't know the difference.
How are you dealing with the different languages? Are you able to interact with the different vendors etc?

Yes, the booths could be from any trade show. The difference is that 75% of the 400 booths are offering equipment compatible with FTA and they are right next to each other and not spread out among thousands of other electronics. Rarely would one see more than a dozen satellite equipment booths at the NAB. Quite competitive between the brands and the booths!

I understand enough of several languages and as English is the international business language, it went very well. The brochures do take some translating....

I am having trouble uplifting images, so will get the rest of the pixs posted in the next few days.

Just got into Paris via the high speed train and transferred to the airport. On taxi for take-off back to the states through JFK.

Au Revoir!

 

[Tron]

Brian, thanks for the pictures and have a safe trip home!

 

[SatelliteAV]

Wireless Satellite Dish.....

Here is a unique unit that is about to come to market. It is a flat panel dish (60cm equiv.) with integrated DVBS/S2 receiver and WiFi transmitter and will support up to 4 TVs. Initially, the unit will output channels from only one MUX (FTA only with no CAS), but eventually it is supposed to support up to 4 tuners with CI. Not sure if I like the idea of putting expensive gear outside, but it may solve some otherwise impossible install situations where coax cannot feed receivers. Currently the unit uses a coax cable to provide power from an external power supply, but they have been playing around with adding a solar panel and batteries. Cool idea, but probably to niche.

 

[SatelliteAV]

Media Markt is a retail chain in Germany that is similar to Best Buy. They stock an extensive inventory of dishes, LNBFs, mounts and Set Top Boxes including over 25 satellite and 15 terrestrial receivers. After taking the first picture (with the employee staring into the lens) he told me "No Photo". So I obliged and only snuck a few more...... LOL! The basic receivers are approximately the same cost as the US, but most were in the mid range nd the high end with dual tuner, DVR MEPG2/4, S2 units were as high as $999E ($1430US). In speaking with a sales rep, their typical customer is likely to purchase a higher end receiver with the average receiver sale at approximately $400E ($575US).

 

[SatelliteAV]

Photos of Mounts



I found the through the roof mounts epecially interesting. Several different sized posts rated for 1.2 - 1.8M dishes. Not sure if North American installers would be willing to contract to remove roofing and properly install a truss / rafter bracket, flashing and reinstall roofing materials. Could be a great additional revenue if the installer was licensed for this type of contruction or worked with a local contractor to install the mount.