It's exciting times in the world of digital newsgathering (or at least it is if you're a sad anorak like me.)

Some of my radio colleagues have begun gathering and editing interviews on PDAs using the Luci software package and sending them from wifi hotspots via FTP. It's an incredibly fast, flexible and cost effective way to work.

More exciting still, though, is the new BGAN network currently being rolled out by Inmarsat.

The system promises internet connection at speeds of up to half a megabit via satellite from virtually any spot on the planet.

What this means for broadcasters is that in the very near future we'll be able to digitally compress pictures -- either live or pre-recorded -- and send them (at a fraction of the cost of traditional uplinks) at speeds that were unimaginable just a few years ago...whether we're halfway up the Hindu Kush or at the top of Mount Everest.

The days of dragging huge, heavy and expensive satellite dishes around the world could soon be numbered.