Software-ground systems can help legacy players compete with mega-constellations. Lluc Palerm, Research Director at Analysys Mason, broke down a recent white paper on the strategies that can help operators respond to a highly disrupted space industry.
Listen to the conversation, get the white paper, or read our four top takeaways below.
Takeaway 1: The emergence of mega-constellations has prompted greater innovation across the industry.
“It’s undeniable that Starlink has had a major impact in the satellite and space industry,” Palerm said. This impact includes bringing in more customers and expanding use cases into more industries. “We look into some verticals like consumer broadband, maritime, and they now have more subscribers than the rest of the industry combined,” he said.
This high level of growth has also had some beneficial effects for the industry as a whole. “They showed that it’s possible to grow the addressable market,” Palerm said. “Not all the subscribers that are now part of the Starlink constellation are from cannibalizing traditional players.”
Much of Starlink’s strength lies in its aggressive approach to the market and the speed at which they move. “They are very aggressive on pricing. They’re launching a lot of capacity. They have a massive capacity to manufacture terminals,” he said. “Generally, they have a very powerful position in many verticals.”
Fast and furious constellation building has also prompted legacy players to seek out greater innovation, such as multi-orbit and software-defined satellites. And to take advantage of these new architectures, “you really need a virtualized ground segment.”
Takeaway 2: To take full advantage of 5G NTN and other advances such as software-defined satellites, operators should embrace software-based ground systems.
Software ground will be critical to mainstreaming satellite into the global communications environment, as will adopt standards such as 3GPP. “Obviously, when we discuss the integration with telcos, it’s going to be critical to adopt 5G and eventually 6G standards,” Palerm said. “Virtualizing your ground segment provides a clear path towards adoption of these critical standards.”
“From a network orchestration point of view, there are many elements of the 5G standard that require virtualization,” Palerm said. “5G is cloud-based, and some functions of 5G really require virtualization.”
Transitioning to a software-based ground segment will be critical in utilizing the cloud, developing and using greater compute power, and opening new verticals, such as connected cars and other mobility-first technologies. Proper integration of telecom, including telecom standards like 5G, will be a huge advantage for legacy players. “Telcos for sure are going to play a bigger role in the satellite ecosystem in the future, and they want to be able to integrate their network orchestration,” Palerm said.
Takeaway 3: The market opportunities for software ground go beyond the satellite industry.
Even with mega-constellations disrupting the satellite market, there are ample opportunities for legacy operators to embrace new opportunities. “I’m still confident in the opportunities for the traditional players,” Palerm said. “As they adopt 5G and 3GPP standards in general, and they create some scale, they will unlock new market opportunities.”
Software ground opens up vast potential in a number of verticals, including mobility-first industries like automotives, where there is growing demand for connected cars. These industries will likely seek out partners with virtualized systems that are capable of integration. “I don’t see any automotive manufacturer adopting satellite connectivity if it’s not through a 3GPP based standard,” Palerm said. “Adopting these open standards is going to be critical in the coming years.”
Takeaway 4: “Start getting involved with these technologies as quick as possible.”
To get started with software ground, Palerm suggested finding a key vertical where SDS and multi-orbit is in high demand, such as mobility or military space. These industries will have the greatest demand for flexible network orchestration, and “that’s exactly where this virtualized ground segment makes a lot of sense,” Palerm said. “That’s where you start.”
With large players like Starlink and Kuiper moving through the innovation cycle quickly, other players will need to find a way to match that pace of innovation. “The best advice is to start small and start quick,” he said. “You want to start getting involved with these technologies as quick as possible.”
There are signs of movement in this direction across the industry. At the Satellite 2025 show, legacy players SES and Intelsat made direct-to-device (D2D) investment announcements. “That was one symptom of the legacy players starting to take more risk,” Palerm said. “I’m positive that if [players] are able to adopt these standards, they will be able to take advantage of all the scale and economies on the ground, including the terrestrial telco ecosystem,” he said.
Explore More:
For more on Starlink, softwarization, and orchestrated satellite ground systems, listen to the full episode.
Get a free copy of the full Analysys Mason white paper.
Meeting the Challenge of Starlink and the Mega-Constellations: Four Competitive Advantages of Software-Defined Ground
For Satellite Industry, Virtualization and Interoperability Can’t Happen Soon Enough
Podcast: Flexible Payloads, Orchestrated Ground and Service on Demand
