The present invention relates to adaptive phy mode systems, in which the modulation type and the forward error correction, jointly called phy mode, depend on the addressed terminal. Specifically, the present invention defines a power control technique for the terminal stations that also commands the phy mode switching. In particular, the peripheral stations transmit with the several phy modes so that the signals are received at the master station making a given performance related parameter equal. Then a hysteresis is defined which regulates the phy mode switching, setting suitable power thresholds of the signal. To keep the received power close to the working point of the appropriate phy mode, the master station relies on the received power level together with information regarding the unused power, which is available in the peripheral station. Thus, interference is reduced, and link coverage and throughput are optimized.