Vrio Corporation, parent company of DIRECTV Latin America and Sky Brasil, and Project Kuiper, Amazon’s (NASDAQ: AMZN) low Earth orbit satellite broadband network, announced a distribution agreement to offer fast, affordable internet connectivity in seven countries in South America. Vrio plans to use Project Kuiper’s network to provide connectivity services to residential customers in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia through DIRECTV Latin America and Sky Brasil, in accordance with local regulations.
This agreement will make internet connectivity available for unserved and underserved communities in an area with a total population of approximately 383 million people, including approximately 200 million people the World Bank estimates are still not connected to the internet.
DIRECTV and Sky will use Project Kuiper’s low-latency, high-bandwidth LEO satellite network to deliver internet connections to areas that the companies say would otherwise be both challenging and prohibitively expensive to serve. With Project Kuiper, the companies will offer nationwide coverage in each country where traditional connectivity options like fiber optics or fixed wireless access require extensive infrastructure on the ground.
“This collaboration with Project Kuiper is in line with our strategy of extending our services throughout South America and continues to define us as a regional leader in information, digital entertainment, connectivity and innovation promotion,” comments Darío Werthein, Vrio President. “We are concerned with bridging the technology gap and even more so the digital divide for our future generations.”
“Project Kuiper is a powerful opportunity to make a difference in people’s lives,” adds Panos Panay, Amazon’s SVP for devices and services. “Working with Vrio to bring affordable access to broadband means we can enable so many more people to create, connect, and learn in new ways.”
“Project Kuiper’s mission is to deliver fast, affordable broadband to areas that have traditionally been difficult to reach,” says Rajeev Badyal, Amazon VP of technology and head of Project Kuiper. “Our network has the capacity and flexibility to serve tens of millions of customers around the world, and this distribution agreement with Vrio is part of our commitment to working with regional providers who share that vision.”
Project Kuiper recently tested two prototype satellites as part of its successful Protoflight mission. It expects to begin deploying its satellite constellation in the coming months, and to start service demonstrations with Vrio and other select customers later this year.
By John Celentano, Inside Towers Business Editor
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