What Drives Innovation in Communication Satellites? Lessons from History

*† ‡ This paper captures the first detailed attempt to quantitatively analyze innovation in the space sector. Building on a communication satellite innovation metric and a spacecraft innovation framework developed as part of an ongoing project, this paper presents a preliminary model of communication satellite innovation. In addition to innovation being a function of the rate of performance normalized by price, innovation was found to be strongly influenced by characteristics of the customer-contractor contractual relationship. Specifically, DoD contracts tend to result in a lower level of innovation on average as compared to other customers and particular customer-contractor pairs perform differently and exhibit a second order relationship in time. Nomenclature α,β,γ, = regression coefficients for technical, generational and contractual components respectively Ci = contractual parameter t = time gi = generational parameter Icuiconj = customer contractor interaction effect IM = innovation metric Mconti = contractor main effect Mcusti = customer main effect