OneWeb, the low earth orbit (LEO) satellite communications company, has successfully launched 34 more satellites from Baikonur, Kazakhstan, bringing its total in-orbit constellation to 288 satellites that will form part of its 648 LEO satellite fleet. The London-based company remains on track to commence service in the fourth quarter this year and to deliver global service in 2022.
In a related story, OneWeb just unveiled its smallest user terminal developed in partnership with Intellian Technologies, Inc. and Collins Aerospace. The Compact-Electronically Steered Antenna OW1 user terminal will bring high-performance, easily installed, affordable communications services to the world’s least-connected regions and industrial sectors, according to the company.
OneWeb remains on-track to deliver global service in 2022, meeting demand from telecommunications providers, ISPs, and governments worldwide for its low-latency, high-speed connectivity services to the hardest to reach places.
The launch follows the successful completion of OneWeb’s “Five to 50” mission in July, where it launched satellites to cover regions north of 50 degrees latitude including the U.K., Canada, Alaska and Arctic Region. Since the start of 2021, OneWeb has announced distribution partnerships across several industries and businesses including most recently with Northwestel in Canada and BT in the U.K.
Earlier this month, OneWeb saw its equity investment top $2.7 billion with a $300 million equity investment from Hanwha, a South Korean global technology and manufacturing company, which came on the heels of a second $500 million investment by Bharti Global in June. Bharti purchased OneWeb with the U.K. Government from Chapter 11 bankruptcy a year ago. In April, OneWeb received $550 million in funding from satellite operator Eutelsat Communications, Inside Towers reported. SoftBank Group Corporation and Hughes Network Systems LLC are also investors.
OneWeb says its goal is to remove the barriers to connectivity that affect some communities, the so-called digital divide. “The digital divide no longer solely affects the 3.2 billion people in the world who lack access to connectivity infrastructure,” the company said. “Everywhere, there are new divides emerging due to constraints on affordability, speed, and usage. Nearly half the world’s population cannot access the high-speed internet (minimum 30 Mbps) that others rely on for simultaneous virtual communications at work, or for school.”
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