SES Satellite Operations Center. Photo: SES

[Via Satellite 11-19-2014] SES subsidiary SES Broadband Services was awarded a contract to provide Astra Connect satellite broadband to 36 German villages in the Eifel district of Bitburg-Prüm. Orbitcom, an Internet Service Provider (ISP) has partnered with SES for the project and will manage, market and sell the service as well as provide customer support to end users.

Astra Connect for communities uses a satellite antenna installed as a central head-end, connecting users through Wi-Fi. Households within head-end reach can access speeds of 25 Mbps. Several parts of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany already have the service.

The SES Broadband Services solution is part of a larger plan to complete Internet access network rollouts in Bitburg-Prüm to May 2015. The Eifel district of Bitburg-Prüm, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development, and the regional Improvement of Agricultural Structures and Coastal Protection all contributed financially to the program.