APT Satellite Company Limited (APT Satellite), founded in 1992 and listed in 
Hong Kong Stock Exchange, is a leading satellite operator in the Asia Pacific 
region, providing satellite coverage for more than 75% of the world's 
population via high-performance in-orbit satellites. With advanced ground 
equipment and network facilities, APT Satellite offers industry-leading 
satellite communications and a wide range of value-added services to 
broadcasters, telecommunications operators, and service providers across the 
globe. These services include video broadcasting, Direct-to-Home TV, video 
delivery, news collection, private corporate networks, distance education, 
broadband access, mobile network base station transmission, and maritime and 
aeronautical mobility applications, solidifying the company's position as one 
of the most important satellite resources in the Asia Pacific region.

Audiovisual Upgrade Demands Drive Digital Transformation

Currently, video technologies are evolving from High Definition (HD) to 
ultra-HD, leading to a host of new applications, such as 4K ultra-HD TV, live 
video, HD social networking/e-commerce, and Augmented Reality/Virtual Reality 
(AR/VR) gaming. The growth of the ultra-HD video sector requires the upgrade of 
video production and storage devices, network transmission devices, and 
playback terminals, accelerating the digital transformation of APT Satellite.

Satellite transmission delivers many unique advantages -- such as large 
bandwidth, high speed, and wide coverage -- for new audiovisual applications. 
In 2017, APT Satellite promoted 4K TV on its APSTAR-7 satellite to contracted 
customers. Meanwhile, APT Satellite was exploring ways to make full use of the 
advantages of satellite TV broadcasting in converged media content production 
and broadcasting, efficient and collaborative transmission, and intelligent 
terminal services, to achieve coordinated, integrated development. In addition, 
unified network facilities serve as the basis for the service support and 
application platforms, as well as production and office systems. Indeed, the 
deployment of cutting-edge Information and Communications Technology (ICT) that 
enhances the basic network, especially the office network, are instrumental to 
improving service quality and efficiency.

For many years, the existing network of APT Satellite has consisted of mainly 
Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n) devices. With limited performance and functionality, however, 
these devices proved unfit for purpose in today's wireless office. Besides 
lackluster wireless network speed, inadequate for handling a large number of HD 
videos, there was also no mechanism for integrating wired and wireless security 
policies. Additionally, Quality of Service (QoS) could not be guaranteed for 
users in specific domains and the experience of different services couldn't be 
assured in a hierarchical way. Facing all of this, APT Satellite sought a new 
technology-led network upgrade solution that could address these challenges as 
well as meet development requirements over the next three to five years. In 
addition, given limited Information Technology (IT) expertise, APT Satellite 
also wanted to simplify its network operations and increase automation.

Huawei AirEngine Wi-Fi 6 Takes Center Stage

After a series of solution competitions and Proof of Concept (PoC) tests, 
Huawei's Wi-Fi 6 solution was selected for its ultra-high performance, stable 
service experience, and intelligent Operations and Maintenance (O&M). A leader 
in Wi-Fi 6 development over many years, Huawei is one of the 16 board members 
of the Wi-Fi Alliance, has held three chair positions in 802.11ax working 
groups, and contributed over 240 proposals since 2011, ranking first among all 
device vendors. Indeed, uniquely powered by 5G technologies, Huawei's Wi-Fi 6 
solution integrates advanced antennas, algorithms, and networking technologies 
to deliver unparalleled performance.

After upgrading to Huawei Wi-Fi 6, APT Satellite's multi-screen office 
experience has been dramatically improved. Employees can access the office 
network, office system, and production system at anytime and from anywhere, 
increasing overall work efficiency and mobility.

-Huawei's unique SmartRadio intelligent radio calibration technology 
automatically detects air interface quality, intelligently optimizes the 
network, and effectively improves network capacity and the user experience, 
enhancing overall AP signal coverage stability. Moreover, signal strength at 
the same location is increased by 100%, while coverage distance is increased by 
20% compared to Wi-Fi 5.

-SmartRadio lossless roaming technology uses the network topology 
identification algorithm to quickly find the optimal AP when roaming. Adopting 
the soft handoff technique also ensures more stable mobile operations and 
office work, achieving zero packet loss during roaming for mission-critical 
services. 

-SmartRadio Dynamic Turbo, an intelligent application acceleration technology, 
helps achieve 10 ms ultra-low latency with multi-queue packet scheduling, 
enabling the network to easily carry heavy-traffic services such as video 
services.

A Secure, Reliable, and Easy-to-Maintain Network

In terms of security control, Huawei's next-generation Software-Defined Network 
(SDN) controller -- the Agile Controller -- is used to associate the Wireless 
Local Area Network (WLAN) Access Controller (AC) with the firewall, anti-virus, 
and online behavior analysis systems, to flexibly manage user rights and 
enterprise data resources. This allows wired and wireless security policies of 
internal personnel to be unified, with unified authentication on the network. 
Meanwhile, guests can access the Internet by registering through personalized 
portals. Such a design allows authorized users to access secure networks, while 
abnormal users are expelled, effectively preventing breaches in enterprise 
networks and data security.

In terms of network O&M, Huawei has implemented major improvements with Wi-Fi 
6. Big data analytics and machine learning algorithms have been adopted to 
automatically learn network behaviors and identify fault patterns, helping 
network management personnel proactively detect potential network issues. 
Additionally, collecting network data from multiple dimensions enables the 
network profile of each user to be displayed in real-time, and provides 
visibility for the entire network experience, covering key metrics such as 
users, online duration, connected APs, experience status, and more. Network 
management is no longer device-centric. Instead, it focuses on the user 
experience by accurately identifying problems that degrade it, providing 
network optimization suggestions.

A Brand-New Audiovisual Experience

In the future, audiovisual services will become ultra-HD, virtual, fragmented, 
and immersive, pushing the need to promote the ongoing transformation and 
upgrade of broadcasting television services. Various new technologies -- 
including 4K/8K HD video, VR, big data, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) -- 
will be deployed throughout the entire ecosystem, from creation and production 
to distribution, review, playback, monetization, and interaction, driving 
innovation and precision production of audiovisual content. APT Satellite has 
always been committed to making full use of its core strengths in broadcasting 
television and online audio and video resources. By introducing and creating a 
variety of high-quality content and transmitting the content through multiple 
channels -- including satellite broadcasting, television, network, and mobile 
terminals -- APT Satellite ensures an optimal viewing experience and meets the 
diverse user audiovisual expectations and needs.

For more information, please visit: 
https://e.huawei.com/in/special_topic/event/2020q2/apac_ip_club_carnival_2020

SOURCE:   Huawei