Practical satellite news gathering using compressed video

The commercial introduction of practical video compression equipment has enabled operational digital satellite news gathering [DSNG] to develop with a number of advantages over analogue methods. These include space segment cost savings as well as a reduction in the size and bulk of a typical system. Successful applications of digital transmission and compression on satellites, including DSNG, have arisen from the economy and flexibility of practical transponder access methods. The ability of news teams to rove the world and have ready access to transponder capacity on a flexible basis is the key technical aspect of the success of SNG; the application of digital techniques simply improves the efficiency of this process. The paper presents a review of the requirements of DSNG, the current and likely future state of the technology, the relevant standards and the system performance issues. In addition, satellite access and compression technology are discussed