demand assigned multiple access (satellite comm.) (DAMA)
Demand Assigned Multiple Access (DAMA) is a competitive procedure for multiple access to frequency channels, especially used in satellite communications. In this procedure, which is a special type of Time Division Multiple Access ( TDMA), idle channels are combined in a pool. When a channel request is received, a quiet channel with the corresponding bandwidth is selected and allocated to the requesting party. In satellite radio, several earth stations compete for a radio frequency.
Another multiple access method used in satellite transmission, Preassigned Multiple Access( PAMA), on the other hand, works with reservation techniques.