[8/31/07 – Satellite News Today] High-speed satellite broadband internet will be available in Germany by the end of September, Eutelsat Communications and ViaSat Inc. announced Aug. 31.

The consumer broadband satellite service, dubbed Tooway, will be provided via Ka-band capacity on Eutelsat’s Hot Bird 6 satellite as well as Ku-band capacity on the Eurobird 3 satellite. The initial offer will deliver maximum downlink speeds of up to 2048 kilobits per second and maximum uplink speeds of up to 384 kilobits per second.

The new service is based on ViaSat’s SurfBeam Docsis two-way broadband satellite system, and Ka- and Ku-band hubs with equipment supplied by ViaSat have been commissioned at Skylogic’s SkyPark teleport in Turin, Italy.

Selected other European markets will have access to the service before the end of the year. In 2010, Eutelsat expects to extend the Tooway service by deploying a dedicated Ka-band satellite to 13º East with multiple spot beams across Europe. It is anticipated that the new satellite will enable much higher speed services.