Starlink Rival OneWeb Now Has Enough Satellite Capacity for Global Broadband
UK-based OneWeb, a competitor to SpaceX’s Starlink system, has launched enough satellites to begin offering global internet services.
Over the weekend, OneWeb successfully launched another 36 satellites into Earth’s orbit, using a rocket from NewSpace India Limited. The company's 18th launch brings its total satellite constellation to 618.
"Thanks to today’s successful launch, the constellation is in place to soon deliver global services,” OneWeb said(Opens in a new window) on Sunday. “By the year-end, OneWeb will be ready to roll out global coverage, enhancing its existing connectivity solutions that are already live in regions north of 50 degrees latitude as it brings new areas online by partnering with leading providers.”
The OneWeb satellite internet service is poised to offer an alternative to Starlink. However, OneWeb is mainly targeting government customers and enterprises—not consumers. That said, the UK company wants to power “mobile backhaul(Opens in a new window)” services, enabling telecommunication providers to bring satellite-powered cellular coverage to remote and underserved communities.
OneWeb also plans on supplying customers with user terminals capable of connecting to the company’s orbiting satellites. In December, the UK company struck a deal with Hughes Network, another satellite internet provider, to build 10,000 user terminals.
“The terminal is compact, easy to install, and will make optimal use of the OneWeb system capabilities for low latency and speeds up to 195Mbps down and 32Mbps up,” the companies said(Opens in a new window) at the time.
OneWeb had been using the rockets from Russian space program Roscosmos to build the satellite internet network. However, the company was forced to
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