Focus: Telecom

Smallsats and the rise of Low Earth Orbit (LEO) constellations have generated attention and media coverage in recent years. At the same time, orders for large satellites in Geostationary Orbit (GEO) fell drastically. While orders for big birds have picked up once again, albeit not with the same gusto of the 2010 and earlier, the...

Avanti Communications will team up with Viasat to support the connectivity needs of Viasat’s customers in the energy sector. Capacity from Avanti’s fleet of HYLAS Ka-band satellites will be used to extend coverage across the North Sea and Western Africa. The companies announced the deal on June 23. This latest lease agreement will allow Viasat...

Speedcast has won a multi-year contract from a large American multinational retailer to provide a managed VSAT backup network for close to 3,000 store operations across Mexico, the company announced June 22. The network will ensure the reliability of electronic point-of-sale data transmission as well as new applications, such as in-store digital kiosks. Speedcast is...

Speedcast has added 13 Gpbs of capacity to its network to support demands in the cruise and energy markets, the company announced in late May. Speedcast’s network size now “significantly” surpasses the company’s pre-pandemic levels. The service provider completed the network upgrade over a five-week period in April and May and expanded its ground network...

Telesat has revealed details of a new demonstration involving one of the world’s biggest telcos as its Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) plans kick into gear. Telefónica and Telesat completed one of the first 5G LEO satellite backhaul demonstrations in Brazil and Latin America, the companies announced May 25. The testing campaign was managed with Telefónica Global...

SES has revealed details of a cellular network connectivity demonstration in Kazakhstan that shows the potential for satellite-based cellular connectivity. Kcell, Kazakhstan’s leading mobile network operator, paired its terrestrial network with SES’s O3b satellites operating in Medium-Earth Orbit (MEO) to establish and test connectivity for 3G and 4G applications in remote parts of Kazakhstan. SES...

Liquid Telecom Satellite Services is expecting to see strong revenue growth in 2022, thanks to demand for connectivity, particularly in Africa, its main market. Scott Mumford, CEO of Liquid Telecom Satellite Services told Via Satellite, “We saw around 25% growth in 2021. We are seeing accelerating revenue growth year-on-year. The percentage increase is still going...

Around the world, governments, militaries, and nonprofits are seeking greater collaboration with the commercial satellite industry to meet connectivity needs, civil and defense representatives said on a government end-users webcast Wednesday morning.  The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) is looking to leverage both space and ground-based developments in 5G as part of its 5G-to-Next G...

Northern Sky Research has been acquired by technology, media, and telecom consulting firm Analysys Mason, the companies announced on Tuesday. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.  Analysys Mason is based in London with offices around the world. The company consults on  strategy, transaction support, transformation, regulation and policy. It covers a range of...

The FCC granted AST SpaceMobile an experimental license for U.S.-based testing of its satellite direct to cell connectivity with the BlueWalker 3 satellite. AST SpaceMobile announced the approval on May 2.  BlueWalker 3 is a test satellite designed to communicate directly with unmodified cell phones to test AST SpaceMobile’s technology and service model. The satellite...