Waiting in the wings Scientific Atlanta

The

crunch in transponder space made Scientific Atlanta to focus

more on the revenue than on the number front. Ranked #2 in the

VSAT vendors, the company registered a turnover of Rs 54 crore,

registering a growth of 42 percent. In terms of number of VSATs

the company supplied 740 of which DAMA and TDM/TDMA contributed

370 each. Captive network was high on its agenda. The company

supplied equipment for ONGC's 30-DAMA VSAT network and Indian

Army for 50-VSAT network.

With the merger process

completed, Scientific Atlanta would now be called Viasat in

India and will have an increase in clientele from three to four.

It seems in India there will not be a major change as Viasat had

hardly any presence in India. The merger will help the company

leverage on Viasat strengths in Defence and DAMA projects and

couple them with Scientific Atlanta's strength in the

broadcasting arena.

With Ku-band transponders to be soon

allotted to VSAT service providers, fresh investments will be

made by service providers. Even the ISPs are planning to build

up Internet gateways. These two phenomena will drive Viasat.