Focus: Telecom

With just three months left on the launch clock, Audacy’s Zero demonstration satellite has completed all environmental testing, the company reported. Hosted at SSL, Zero has undergone random vibration testing (to simulate the launch environment) and thermal vacuum testing (space environment) over the last week, passing both successfully. In the time remaining to liftoff, the team...

NewSpace startup LeoSat, which is building the satellite equivalent of a Virtual Private Network (VPN) in space, plans to focus primarily on raising funds for its Series A round this year. With a glut of major customer agreements already signed, the company’s next hurdle is ensuring it has enough cash on hand to build out...

Comtech EF Data has received an infrastructure equipment order valued at $1.4 million from an undisclosed satellite operator. The operator teams Comtech EF Data products with its High Throughput Satellite (HTS) options to offer improved price for performance levels to its customer base. This will create new markets while keeping satellite connectivity competitive within international...

Integrasys, a development, engineering and integration company specializing in the telecommunication and broadcasting markets, has launched its Always Up Satellite Terminal (Alusat) product — an automated Very Small Aperture terminal (VSAT) tool that helps enhance virtual network maintenance after installation — for VT iDirect customers. Alusat works with iDirect’s platform and is an extension of the installation...

Could you survive in Green Bank, West Virginia? Settled in the center of the National Radio Quiet Zone, wireless signals have been banned from the 143-population town to prevent interference with the Green Bank Telescope. MentalFloss writer Lucas Reilly describes it as a “tech-savvy teenager’s nightmare.” Read more at MentalFloss >>

LeoSat, which is launching a constellation of up to 108 Low Earth Orbit (LEO) communications satellites, has entered into an agreement with Signalhorn, a provider of hybrid network solutions for enterprise and government customers. According to LeoSat, its system of LEO communications satellites can achieve lower latency and stronger end-to-end security compared to traditional satellite...

Satellite companies building next-generation networks must be prepared to meet obligations for lawful intercept, says Subsentio Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Steve Bock. If network operators are unable to comply with a legal request for specific data from a law enforcement agency, there could be a hefty price to pay, he warned in an interview with...

Sky and Space Global announced that the Three Diamonds, its first set of nanosatellites, are fully operational and have started to generate revenue from existing customers. Revenues are expected to ramp up to approximately AU$1 million ($770,800) per year from existing customers only over the coming months. The satellites are now evenly spaced in one...

Satellite operators often boast about the market potential that exists in the 3 billion people on Earth who aren’t connected to the internet. But even if their business plans survive the economic hurdles associated with launching a broadband constellation, there’s a chance demand from the unconnected population won’t be up to snuff. Read more at...

Open architecture standards will make or break satellite’s viability for 5G and other applications, said a mixed panel of experts at the SATELLITE 2018 Conference & Exhibition. During a panel discussing the potential convergence of the satellite and terrestrial industries, the speakers asserted that establishing fair and open-ended standards will be key for satellite to...