Satellite internet access - improvement still needed

Being a former Direcway customer, I found this interesting. Fact is, wired broadband isn't everywhere, there aren't a lot of alternatives, and they all cost money. Satellite has been around a while but it's pricey and WiMax isn't yet ubiquitous. I found Direcway very good, certainly better than dialup (what isn't?) but at the time, no match for my DSL service that replaced it. Also played with Starband a couple of times at a local dealer, also good but no match for DSL or cable. I'd definitely recommend satellite to anyone who couldn't get DSL/cable and who could afford it. IMO, the satellite providers are probably sitting on a gold mine but they need to get more competitive in pricing and offer higher speeds. The only real downsides to satellite are high latency times (which may not be important to all customers) and occasional weather-related signal loss (and of course... cost). It's a really neat technology but at this point, unaffordable for many. I think it bears watching though, looks like it's (slowly) headed in the right direction.