The European Commission (EC) is looking to build a global Low Earth Orbiting (LEO) broadband-by-satellite system to help bridge – and solve – the digital divide in connectivity. The European Commission has selected a consortium of European satellite manufacturers, operators and service providers, telco operators and launch service providers to study the design, development and […]
SpaceX is well on track to have 1000 satellites in orbit by the end of January 2021. Rival OneWeb is due to add another 36 craft to its existing fleet of 74 satellites on December 17th. Amazon’s Jeff Bezos has yet to launch any of his Project Kuiper fleet, but observers are expecting launch action […]
The European Commission seems enthusiastic about backing its own dedicated Low Earth Orbit system for satellite-based broadband. Speaking during the European Space Week 2020 its Commissioner for the Internal Market, Thierry Breton, spoke in favour of a Quantum Communications Infrastructure satellite scheme. The European Commission has awarded a group of European telcos, satellite manufacturers and […]
Telesat’s SVP of Corporate & Business Development, Michael Schwartz, told attendees to the Euroconsult World Satellite Business Week event, held virtually this year, that the Canadian company would meet the key deadlines to build and launch its Low Earth Orbiting satellite constellation. Earlier this week Telesat confirmed a C$600 million (€387.5m) commitment from the Canadian […]
AST & Science is planning a mega-constellation of satellites, called SpaceMobile, to provide 2G/3G/4G/5G connectivity anywhere on the planet, including aircraft broadband connectivity. Texas-based AST & Science (AST) has won investments from the likes of Vodafone and Japanese e-retailer Rakuten and bringing the amount raised to $128 million. Its first test-satellite will reportedly launch later […]
The Canadian government is going ahead with its C$600 million (€391m) plan to ‘bridge the digital divide’ for its citizens. The scheme sees the cash going into satellite operator Telesat which says it will ensure affordable, high-speed broadband connectivity across all of Canada with Telesat’s forthcoming Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite constellation. There was a […]
ASD-Eurospace, Europe’s space industry trade association, issued what it called an ‘Industry Manifesto’ on October 15 which called for a “resilient satellite system for secure connectivity […] to make Europe fit for the Digital Age”. The document calls for a constellation of Low Earth orbiting (LEO) satellites, owned by the European Commission, and serving military, […]
Carlos Placido, a Northern Sky Research (NSR) Senior Analyst, says that the new Low Earth Orbiting (LEO) satellite mega-constellations, while not providing data-rates as high as fibre when connecting major cities but when adding in other delays the satellite-based systems will be able to offer lower latency than fibre across long distances, a situation that […]
Ottawa-based satellite operator Telesat has reportedly told the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) that it will start supply a basic LEO broadband-by-satellite service in 2022. But there are considerable complications to that promise. In a separate presentation made at last week’s Satellite Innovation webinar Telesat’s Erwin Hudson (VP/LEO division) told delegates that its polar orbiting satellites […]
If there’s one vital component that Elon Musk and the likes of Jeff Bezos as well as Telesat, OneWeb and others need it’s a low-cost consumer friendly phased array flat-panel antenna. Yoel Gat, founder of Gilat Satellite Networks (and now CEO at SatixFy, a designer of flat-panel antennas) says that the dream of a sub-$300 […]