Focus: Telecom

Next-gen antenna manufacturer Kymeta has partnered with local telecommunications providers to offer relief services throughout Puerto Rico, which is still reeling from Hurricane Maria’s devastation six weeks after its arrival. The island’s most devastating storm on record has left Puerto Rico in the midst of an elongated humanitarian crisis, with more than half of the...

The government of Guangzhou City in Southern China and BlueFocus IFEC Technology announced in Guangzhou on Oct. 9 that they will jointly establish the “Belt and Road” in-flight internet fund with a capital injection of 10 billion yuan ($1.5 billion), together with China’s first In-Flight Internet Centre for Mass Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and a $1 trillion yuan ($151.1 billion) In-Flight Internet Industrial Park....

Intelsat and Gilat Satellite Networks announced they will jointly offer 4G broadband infrastructure to Mobile Network Operators (MNOs). IntelsatOne Mobile Reach Solar 4G bundles connectivity provided by Intelsat’s global network with Gilat’s Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) system for small cell and cellular backhaul. According to Intelsat, the service provides an additional end-to-end managed solution...

The Mohammad Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) announced this week that the United Arab Emirates’ first domestic satellite, KhalifaSat, passed a critical solar panel deployment test. According to the MBRSC, the test reflects an important step toward the UAE’s development of its own satellite manufacturing industry. Read more at Gulf News

In this exclusive interview, Via Satellite caught up with Choi to find out his views of recent events, what happens next, and what the future holds for ABS...

Yahsat, the United Arab Emirates (UAE)-based satellite operator, announced the successful trial of a 50Mbps in-flight connection. The result of a partnership between Yahsat, du, Etihad Airways Engineering, Hughes Network Systems and Carlisle Interconnect, the high-speed broadband offering will be available for airlines to offer its passengers within the next year. Using Yahsat’s Al Yah...

Speedcast International has won a multi-year, multimillion-dollar contract with an Australian government department conducting world-class scientific and environmental research in Antarctica. Per the contract, the company will support the Australian Antarctic program with mission-critical communications to the outside world. Speedcast will provide Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) bandwidth, equipment and installation including training, antenna upgrades...

5G Americas President Chris Pearson has operated within the mobile wireless industry for almost 30 years, and has his finger directly on the pulse of 5G development. Here, he shares his thoughts on where 5G is headed and how mobile carriers plan to take advantage…

Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS) officially announced on Oct. 30 that Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Thomas Choi is transitioning his role to a board director. According to the company, Choi wishes to pursue “other interests and opportunities,” but will remain a significant investor in the business. “I announce that the time of my servitude as CEO...

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) and OneWeb have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to cooperatively develop solutions to connect 237,000 homes throughout the country — bringing affordable, high-speed, low latency broadband access to those living in rural and remote areas. This MOU comes within the efforts of...