Amazon To Launch 3,236 Satellites Into Space To Provide High-Speed Internet Access To Underserved Areas

Amazon To Launch 3,236 Satellites Into Space.

New filings from e-commerce giant Amazon show that the company’s next frontier is the final frontier, as it gears up to launch thousands of Internet-providing satellites into space.

Amazon has unveiled its intentions behind a mysterious plan, dubbed Project Kuiper, initially announced last September, according to GeekWire.

The goal is to provide high-speed broadband internet access to unserved and underserved areas around the globe, according to patents published with the International Telecommunications Union.

By launching a total of 3,236 satellites into low-orbit around the Earth, Project Kuiper would be able to serve about 95 percent of the world’s population and successfully position Amazon as a global ISP provider.

‘At Amazon, our energy comes from innovating on behalf of our customers. There are billions of people around the world who lack access to broadband internet. Our vision is to provide low-latency, high-speed broadband connectivity to many of these unserved and underserved communities around the world,’ said an Amazon representative in a statement.

‘This is a long-term project that envisions serving tens of millions of people who lack basic access to broadband internet.

The internet giant won’t be without competition in its quest to become an ISP player, however.

SpaceX, owned by Tesla CEO Elon Musk, has also plowed ahead with a plan that could put as many as 12,000 satellites into low-Earth orbit in the coming years. 

Starlink, as Musk’s project is called, is set to begin launching satellites this year and according to the company will come online once 800 satellites are operational.

Likewise, the London headquartered company, OneWeb, has become a major contender in the race to provide global broadband access, launching its first six successful satellites in February and raising a formidable $1.25 billion to support future launches.

Among the advantages of broadband internet derived from low-earth orbiting satellites are the costs — currently one satellite can be made for $1 million — as well as its ability to deliver loads of information faster than traditional wired networks.

According to OneWeb, its satellites will be able to deliver up to 500 MBPS to users.

By comparison, current average download speeds in the U.S. hover at a little more than 92 MBPS according to a survey by speed testers, Ookla.

Amazon hasn’t yet provided a timeline for when it plans to begin launching its satellites, but told MailOnline that ‘it will take years to roll out.’ For now, it will continue to seek regulatory approval from agencies in the U.S. and around the world.

Next up for Project Kuiper in the U.S. will be a green light from the FCC.

Regulators will be tasked with balancing a rush to launch satellites into low-Earth orbit safely, without contributing to a growing orbit of space junk that threatens human exploration of space and more.

Source: dailymail