Satellite Networks

OneWeb India says it has received the necessary authorisations from Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) to launch Eutelsat OneWeb’s commercial satellite broadband services in India.

The Fijian Competition and Consumer Commission (FCCC) welcomed the news that LEOsat operator Starlink has acquired licences to operate in Fiji, saying it will boost competition and make the digital economy more inclusive.

Satellite connectivity company Astranis announced it will have two satellites in operation next year over the Philippines to connect remote islands. 

Intelsat and Africa Mobile Networks (AMN) have revealed plans to deploy 1,340 new satellite-connected cellular towers in Madagascar, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Eutelsat OneWeb signed a multi-year master distribution agreement on Wednesday with African ICT integrator NEC XON to bring OneWeb’s LEOsat connectivity to Sub-Saharan Africa.

NOW Corp added another satellite broadband partnership to its collection on Wednesday, this one with aspiring LEOsat operator Rivada Space Networks to target enterprises in the Philippines.

The Republic of Djibouti has launched its first satellite, Djibouti 1A. It took off last weekend from the Vandenberg Space Force Base onboard the SpaceX Transporter-9, a dedicated SSO rideshare mission carrying a variety of payloads into sun-synchronous orbit.

SES announced on Monday that it has launched two more O3b mPOWER satellites into medium orbit, making its mPOWER satellite broadband offering ready for service despite reported electrical problems with the satellites.

Satellite internet service Starlink, from rocket manufacturer SpaceX, has won a tender from Mexico's state energy firm to provide services until the end of December 2026, according to Reuters.

Space X satellite connectivity subsidiary Starlink announced it launched broadband services in Benin, marking the sixth country in Africa to see the service. 

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Mauritius Research and Innovation Council (MRIC) have signed a memorandum of understanding  (MoU) to develop, launch, and operate an earth observation (EO) satellite for Mauritius.

Indian telco Reliance Jio Infocomm demonstrated its satellite broadband service JioSpaceFiber at India Mobile Congress on Friday, claiming it’s the first satellite-based gigabit service in India.

NOW Corp has signed a MoU with Mangata Networks to provide broadband satellite and edge computing solutions to enterprises in the Philippines, although actual services will have to wait until Mangata launches its satellites a few years from now.

Several high-growth sectors in South Sudan are to receive satellite-enabled connectivity solutions designed to serve specific requirements – with help from UAE-headquartered satellite solutions provider, Yahsat.

According to a number of press reports, Senegal is now preparing for the launch of its first satellite, initially scheduled for 2021 and postponed to 2023 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

A preliminary agreement with Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Digital Development, Innovation & Aerospace will see Starlink provide high speed internet access to around 2000 rural schools across the country.

Paraguay is the latest market in which Starlink has procured a licence for satellite broadband.

African e-commerce platform Jumia has announced an agreement with satellite internet service Starlink to retail the Starlink Residential Kit in Africa.

Two stories involving enhanced coverage and connectivity have emerged from Brazil this week – one involving satellite networks for enterprises, operators and aviation, and the other involving terrestrial internet access for schools.

The Costa Rican government reportedly gave permission for Elon Musk’s broadband provider Starlink to operate in the country in Q4 this year. 

In what could be a significant development for space-based 5G, operator China Telecom, technology giant ZTE and Beijing-based company SpaceIoT say they have completed the industry’s first 5G non-terrestrial network (NTN) deployment in a marine scenario.

Malaysia’s rural broadband service provider MEASAT says it is now connecting close to 600 school sites in remote locations throughout the country through its CONNECTme NOW high-speed wireless satellite broadband services.

Integrated network services company Paratus Group has entered an agreement as a distributor for high-speed services across the African continent on behalf of Starlink, the world’s first and largest satellite constellation using a low Earth orbit.

SpaceX has reportedly opened discussions with the government of Burundi over a potential launch of its Starlink Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite broadband service in Q2 2024.

Two recent agreements, in Bahrain and India, underline the growing importance of the space sector in areas like IoT and the cloud.

Only days after the operator announced the roll-out of commercial 5G services in Addis Ababa, comes news that Ethio Telecom is planning satellite network upgrades with the help of satellite networking technology, solutions and services company Gilat.

Thaicom, an Asian satellite and space tech company headquartered in Bangkok, has announced the selection of Airbus, one of the world’s leading space businesses, to build its new generation software-defined high-throughput satellite (HTS) at 119.5 degrees east.

Satcoms company Astranis is partnering with Mexican ISP Apco Networks on what it describes as a two-satellite programme to bring affordable broadband internet to five million people.

YahClick, the data solutions subsidiary of the UAE’s flagship satellite solutions provider Al Yah Satellite Communications Company (YahSat), has partnered with Nigerian Communications Satellite (NIGCOMSAT) to expand broadband penetration in sub-Saharan Africa and boost access to critical electronic services across the region.

Mexico’s CFE TEIT and multi-orbit satellite player SES have announced the delivery of voice and data services enabled by SES’s mobile backhaul solution to 400 underserved, remote villages and communities across the country via the very high-throughput (HTS) SES-17 Ka-band satellite.

Telemor, the Timor-Leste subsidiary of Viettel, has renewed its eight-year agreement with SES to provide enhanced mobile connectivity for consumers and enterprises in the market.

It’s not just in India where platform-based initiatives are aiming to boost women-run businesses. In Malaysia rural broadband service provider MEASAT has officially activated the Program Transformasi Usahawan (PTU) segment of the KampungDigital365.com joint initiative by MEASAT and app-based parcel locker network system Parcel365.