Overview : As one of Asia’s leading commercial satellite company, THAICOM Plc. has conceived and developed a new generation of broadband satellite that would serve the demand for high-speed broadband Internet access in the future. In the past, broadband via satellite has suffered from high cost compared to other systems available. THAICOM developed IPSTAR technology with its own patent to increase system capacity and efficiency such that the cost of service would be considerably lower than that currently provided by conventional satellites. THAICOM 4 (IPSTAR-1) is the first of a new generation of broadband satellites that acts both as an Internet backbone connection to fiber optic cables for ISPs and as a last-mile broadband Internet service to consumers, competing with cable modem and ADSL.

THAICOM 4 satellite is one of the largest communications satellites ever built, with a massive bandwidth capacity of 45 Gbps, almost equivalent to all satellites serving Asia today. THAICOM 4 is also the first broadband satellite in the world.



Specifications :

Design	:	LS-1300 SX
Manufacturer	:	Space Systems/Loral (Palo Alto, USA)
Power System	:	At least 14,400 Watts at the end
Launch Weight	:	6,505 Kg.
Life Expectancy	:	16 years
Transponder Capacity	:	45 Gbps Equivalent to 1,000+ Transponders of 36 MHz of conventional coding and modulation
Satellite Location	:	119.5 degrees East
Launch Agency	:	Arianespace of France
Launch Date	:	August 11, 2005