Page 59 - SAMENA Trends - December 2023

SATELLITE UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

MTN Group Collaborating with Four Satellite Operators to Expand Africa’s Internet

Connectivity

African regional operator MTN Group
is teaming up with the likes of SpaceX
(Starlink), AST SpaceMobile, OneWeb and
Lynk Global to develop satellite-based
internet connectivity across rural parts
of the continent. In developing its Low
Earth Orbit (LEO) exploration, Techpoint
Africa notes that MTN Group has already
initiated pilot trials with AST SpaceMobile
(Nigeria, South Sudan), Lynk Global (Ghana,
South Africa) and Starlink (Rwanda and
Nigeria) to test standard and direct-to-
device satellite services. It is understood
that MTN’s contracts with satellite service
providers ‘are based on a shared revenue
model, even though each agreement is
negotiated separately’.

Hughes Rolls Out New Internet Plans with Jupiter 3 Capacity

Hughes Network Systems has introduced Hughes also has the Hughes Fusion plan ultra-high-density satellite features more
new high-speed satellite internet plans which combines satellite and wireless than 300 spot beams and brings 500 Gbps
using capacity from its recently launched technologies for a lower latency experience. of capacity over the United States, Canada,
Jupiter-3 satellite. The company now This is a milestone for Hughes as the Mexico, and parts of South America. The
offers new plans with speeds up to 100 company was maxed out on capacity for its company has lost subscribers in recent
Mbps, and all plans include unlimited data. fleet before Jupiter 3 launched in July. The years as it was capacity-constrained
while Starlink began commercial service.
According to parent company EchoStar’s
most recent financial results, Hughes
ended the third quarter with approximately
1,063,000 broadband subscribers — down
17% year-over-year. Hughes said these
new plans and speeds are a “fundamental
reinvention” of what satellite internet can
be. “Customers expect to be able to stream,
videoconference and play games online,”
said Peter Gulla, senior vice president,
Hughes. “The new Hughesnet is designed to
enable these applications with fast speeds,
unlimited data and new low-latency Fusion
plans. Since inventing satellite internet in
the 1990s, Hughes has been dedicated to
constantly innovating our service to meet
the needs of customers beyond the reach
of cable and fiber connectivity.”

59 DECEMBER 2023