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Articles for Category Tag - Satellite

Airbus Rejects Idea of Moving OneWeb Satellite Manufacture to UK UPDATE

27th August, 2020 (9 Comments)

The Head of Airbus US Space Systems, Debra Facktor, appears to have flatly rejected the idea that construction of OneWeb‘s new Low Earth Orbit (LEO) broadband satellites could in the future be moved from their $85m (£64m) facility in Florida (USA) and shifted over to the United Kingdom.

Early SpaceX Starlink LEO Broadband Speedtests Disappoint

15th August, 2020 (44 Comments)

The original promise of “fibre-like” broadband speeds from SpaceX’s future mega constellation of small Low Earth Orbit (LEO) Starlink satellites may not materialise. A leak of early speedtests from beta customers in the USA point to “superfast” (30Mbps+), but not “ultrafast” (100Mbps+), levels of performance. Fine.. but not “fibre“.

Satellite ISP Bigblu Broadband Acquired by Eutelsat for £38m

31st July, 2020 (0 Comments)

The European operations of broadband ISP Bigblu (BBB Europe), which supplies various satellite and fixed wireless internet access services to consumers across the UK and parts of EU, has been acquired by satellite operator Eutelsat for a consideration of c.£38m (just as their new high speed Konnect satellite is due to enter service).

Amazon’s Kuiper System Enters the LEO Broadband Satellite Space

31st July, 2020 (16 Comments)

Online shopping giant Amazon has confirmed that they plan to invest over $10 billion (£7.60bn) in order to build their own mega constellation of 3,236 Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites to rival SpaceX and OneWeb, which will aim to deliver ultrafast broadband to some of the poorest connected communities across the world.

Leaked – Images of SpaceX’s Starlink Broadband User Terminals

16th July, 2020 (60 Comments)

New details of the beta trial for SpaceX’s forthcoming Starlink broadband service, which will be based off a vast constellation of compact Low Earth Orbit (LEO) spacecraft (satellite), have been leaked across the internet after they were discovered hidden within the company’s website.

Fixed Broadband Growth Slows as Global Subscribers Top 1.13bn

16th July, 2020 (0 Comments)

New research from Point Topic has found that world fixed broadband subscribers grew by just 1.25% (13.9 million) in Q1 2020 to total 1.13 billion, but the main impact from COVID-19 won’t be understood until Q2 and Q3. Meanwhile almost every connection technology saw growth, except copper (ADSL etc.) lines that fell -10.3% year-on-year.

OneWeb Broadband Satellite Service Sold to UK Gov Consortium

3rd July, 2020 (14 Comments)

The Government and Indian conglomerate Bharti Global have today made a successful £800m ($1bn) bid to acquire the British-registered space company OneWeb, which will see the UK invest £400m ($500m) in order to help build a new global network of Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites for ultrafast broadband and possibly GPS.

Government to Splash £500m on OneWeb Broadband Satellites

26th June, 2020 (30 Comments)

The UK Government will reportedly invest around £500m (equity) into British-registered space company OneWeb as part of a wider private-sector consortium bid. The firm has been busy building a global network of Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites for ultrafast broadband, but as part of the deal it may have to deliver GPS too.

Scotland’s R100 Broadband Voucher Scheme Set for Summer

13th June, 2020 (18 Comments)

The Scottish Government‘s Minister for Connectivity, Paul Wheelhouse, has confirmed that their new voucher scheme for poorly served areas (i.e. those that cannot access “superfast broadband” 30Mbps+) is set to go live this summer. The scheme will be accompanied by a new online “premises level” eligibility checker.

Troubled OneWeb Hope to Expand LEO Broadband Constellation

27th May, 2020 (4 Comments)

British-registered space company OneWeb has today shunned its on-going bankruptcy woes by submitting a modification request to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which would enable them to to increase the number of LEO broadband satellites in their constellation up to 48,000!

LEO Satellite Broadband Firm OneWeb Files for Bankruptcy

29th March, 2020 (8 Comments)

The British-registered space company OneWeb, which had been in the process of launching a mega constellation of compact Low Earth Orbit (LEO) ultrafast broadband satellites, has officially filed for voluntary relief under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code in the USA. But finding a buyer in this climate may present some challenges.

OneWeb Future Uncertain as 34 LEO Broadband Satellites Lofted

23rd March, 2020 (2 Comments)

British space firm OneWeb successfully launched 34 new compact Low Earth Orbit (LEO) ultrafast broadband satellites into orbit on the back of a ‘Soyuz-2-1b Fregat-M’ rocket on Saturday (active total of 74), but despite this progress the company has been sacking staff and is reportedly considering filing for bankruptcy protection.

Vodafone Invests in SpaceMobile – 4G and 5G via LEO Satellites

4th March, 2020 (5 Comments)

Vodafone has invested $25m (£19.5m) into Texas-based AST & Science, which is building a new set of low latency Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites under their “SpaceMobile” project. The constellation would make it possible to connect to your Smartphone via 4G and 5G directly from LEOs in space (instantly covering poorly served areas).

New Antenna to Fuel Satellite Based WiFi on Some UK Trains

27th February, 2020 (12 Comments)

A team of researchers working out of the Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh have developed a new type of Hybrid Flat Panel Antenna (FPA), which could deliver fast on-board WiFi internet connectivity for trains by harnessing a Satellite broadband connection instead of a mobile (4G / 5G) network for capacity.

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Update – OneWeb and SpaceX LEO Ultrafast Broadband Satellites

31st January, 2020 (25 Comments)

Good progress is being made by rivals SpaceX and OneWeb, which are both now rapidly moving into a new phase of large-scale deployments on the road to creating two mega constellations of compact Low Earth Orbit (LEO) ultrafast broadband satellites; these should eventually offer “fibre like” speeds to consumers across the world.

FTTH and Wireless Boom as World Fixed Broadband Subs Hit 1.112bn

24th January, 2020 (2 Comments)

The latest report from Point Topic has revealed that global fixed broadband subscribers grew by 2.17% (23.6 million) in Q3 2019 to total 1.112 billion. During the past year copper (ADSL etc.) based lines fell by 7.7% while almost every other technology, particularly FTTH and fixed wireless connectivity, grew.

Eutelsat Successfully Launch Konnect Broadband Satellite

17th January, 2020 (2 Comments)

European satellite operator Eutelsat has successfully launched the first of a new generation of all-electric propulsion based broadband satellites – Eutelsat Konnect – into Geostationary Orbit (GEO) around the Earth, which was put into space via an Arianespace Ariane 5 rocket from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana.