Analysis of the launch of the Worldspace satellite radio consumer platform in India and review of the receiver hardware, written by Grant Goddard in November 2000 for Radio World magazine.

1. WORLDSPACE LAUNCHES
SATELLITE RADIO IN INDIA
by
GRANT GODDARD
www.grantgoddard.co.uk
November 2000

2. Satellite radio? A portable radio that receives dozens of radio stations beamed
directly from a satellite in orbit 35,000 kilometres above the earth's equator? A
vision of the future? Not at all. This is the here and now. Satellite radio
technology not only exists, but is already in full operation across the whole of
Africa, the Middle East and South Asia.
A private corporation called WorldSpace, based in Washington DC, already
has two satellites in geo-stationary orbit above Africa and Asia, and plans to
add a third satellite above Latin America next year. In the garden city of
Bangalore – India's 'silicon valley' – huge billboards announce to the public the
recent arrival of WorldSpace's satellite radio service. Visit the city's radio
equipment stores and you can purchase four different designs of WorldSpace
receiver specially produced by Hitachi, Sanyo, JVC and Panasonic to receive
satellite radio stations. Bangalore is the first test market for WorldSpace's
Asian service and then, by the end of 2000, the campaign will roll out to many
other Indian cities.
To stimulate demand for the hardware, WorldSpace is presently subsidising
the retail prices of its receivers on sale in India. The cheapest model, Hitachi
KH-WS1, sells locally for the reasonable sum of 4990 rupees (US$107)
including taxes. The identical receiver can be purchased from WorldSpace's
web site (www.worldspace.com) for US$125 + taxes + shipping. In addition to
receiving WorldSpace's satellite broadcasts, the Hitachi radio is equipped with
the normal AM and FM bands, as well as short wave bands from 11 to 120
metres. This makes it ideal for the international traveller, particularly since
each receiver will lock into signals broadcast from any of WorldSpace's three
satellites, depending which continent one is on.
The biggest drawback for the intercontinental road warrior is the Hitachi's
1.9kg weight (including four size "D" batteries). Many airlines strictly enforce
their baggage limits, which makes the WorldSpace receiver a heavy burden
compared to (non-satellite) models such as the trusty Sony ICF-SW30
AM/FM/SW radio that fills only 0.5kg of my baggage allowance.
The Hitachi is equipped with an electrical connection that can be usefully
switched between 110 and 220/240 volts, and removing the batteries reduces
the receiver's weight to 1.5kg. I found the batteries' lifetime to be less than the
12 hours quoted in the accompanying handbook. Another problem is the
relative scarcity of large size 'D' batteries in emerging countries. In Mumbai, I
eventually found a photographic store that stocked them, but was charged
US$16 for four Duracell, plus a ten per cent premium because, said the
shopkeeper, "they are very rare."
The radio itself operates in the same way as a conventional receiver, using an
LCD for channel information and 'UP' and 'DOWN' buttons for tuning. There is
an additional 'BEAM SEEK' button for receiving satellite radio. The satellite
'dish', attached sturdily to the top of the receiver with a customised clamp
system, is a flat box rather than a concave sphere, 33mm deep and about the
width and height of a compact disc jewel box.
WorldSpace Launches Satellite Radio In India
©2000 Grant Goddard
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3. Setting up the equipment to receive satellite signals is incredibly simple,
compared to the tortuous precision needed to receive satellite TV signals.
WorldSpace's satellite for Asia is positioned above Singapore, so you simply
point the dish to the sky in that direction (southeast from India) and press the
'BEAM SEEK' button. As with all satellite technology, the dish must have lineof-sight access to the satellite, making reception within many buildings and
built-up city areas impossible. Being digital, the radio gives you either a
perfect quality signal or nothing at all.
I experimented and found that I could use the receiver inside a building, as
long as it was within about a metre of a window with an unobstructed view in
the necessary direction. I was unlucky in Mumbai, where the hotel gave me a
sixth-floor room facing due north, making satellite reception impossible.
Fortunately, the hotel's outdoor swimming pool proved to have a perfectly clear
view towards the southwest. In poolside trials, I found that individual palm
tree fronds proved no barrier to the signal, but more dense vegetation or
groups of palm trees did prevent reception.
Once the Hitachi locks onto the satellite signal, the initial shock is the sheer
clarity of the digital sound, absolutely crystal clear with no fading or
interference. If an object temporarily blocks the line-of-sight (such as a pool
attendant walking past), the signal disappears for a few seconds but returns
quickly without the need for re-adjustment. The receiver has a headphone
socket (useful by the pool) and a line-out socket to link it to a home audio
system.
So what exactly can you listen to? Only weeks after the system's launch in
Asia, I could receive 23 different stations by satellite. That number may not
seem impressive relative to media-saturated North American markets but, in a
country such as India, it is a revelation. The only terrestrial radio station in
India is state broadcaster All India Radio, available on AM across the country,
and on FM only in larger cities. To people living in such media-deprived
countries, WorldSpace's radio channels offer unprecedented expansion of
choice.
In the WorldSpace beam directed towards India, twelve radio stations have
international content, including the BBC World Service, CNN Radio
International, and eight non-stop music channels in different niche formats.
Nine channels carry Indian programming, including several playing non-stop
Hindi and Tamil film songs, one in the Kannada language, one in the
Malayalam language, and a live feed from London's Asian station, Sunrise
Radio.
Without wishing to confuse the issue, I should explain that every WorldSpace
satellite carries three different beams, each covering a different geographical
footprint. So, while I am under the western beam of the AsiaStar satellite that
carries stations relevant to the Indian sub-continent, a listener within the
footprint of the eastern beam from the same satellite would receive a different
menu of stations, presumably programmed in Japanese and Chinese
WorldSpace Launches Satellite Radio In India
©2000 Grant Goddard
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4. languages. Each satellite beam has capacity for 400 different stations, so the
choices will be extended dramatically over time.
The verdict? I can understand why several hundred WorldSpace receivers
have already been sold in the Bangalore test market only weeks after launch.
The technology is easy to use, the quality of reception is incredible, and the
signal is remarkably robust once you achieve contact with the satellite. I could
rotate the receiver 30 degrees in either direction without losing the signal, and
could tilt the dish up and down without effect. My only hope is that the second
generation of receivers weigh less and use 'AA' batteries.
Forget the novelty of internet radio, forever plagued by poor connection
speeds and bandwidth problems. Satellite delivery is more obviously the
future direction for radio. The most remarkable feat is WorldSpace's
successful implementation of this futuristic technology in the developing world
– where traditional media infrastructure is terribly sparse – by effectively
leapfrogging a whole tier of progression. I have seen the future (well, heard it)
and the view from the poolside in Mumbai is that satellite radio technology
proves more practical and immediate than many of the 'convergent'
technologies presently being touted as the next big thing.
[First published in 'Radio World' magazine as 'WorldSpace Up And Running', February 2001, p.5]
Grant Goddard is a media analyst / radio specialist / radio consultant with thirty years of
experience in the broadcasting industry, having held senior management and consultancy
roles within the commercial media sector in the United Kingdom, Europe and Asia. Details at
http://www.grantgoddard.co.uk
WorldSpace Launches Satellite Radio In India
©2000 Grant Goddard
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