No BS*: BT is hooking up with OneWeb to tackle UK notspots
- Reference: 1624890672
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2021/06/28/bt_oneweb_deal/
- Source link:
It has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the UK satellite outfit to explore ways that hard-to-reach premises in the UK – still in the digital slow lane – might be able to get a decent service.
The tie-up is very much in the early stages, although something could be ready for scrutiny by the end of the year.
[1]
Both sides are looking at how satellite technology "might support improved capacity, mobile resilience, backhaul and coverage, including Fixed Wireless Access."
[2]
[3]
OneWeb was bought out of bankruptcy last year by UK.gov along with Indian multinational Bharti Global, getting a cash injection in April from Eutelsat.
[4]UK prime minister Boris Johnson reluctant to reveal his involvement in the OneWeb deal
[5]UK's Goonhilly Satellite Earth Station takes an eye off the sky to strike out into data centre biz
[6]One does not simply repurpose an entire internet constellation for sat-nav, but UK might have a go anyway
[7]We're not getting back with Galileo, UK govt tells The Reg, as question marks sprout above its BS*
At the time, [8]rumours had began to circulate that the government might have taken a stake in stricken OneWeb so that it could become the backend of its BS (Brexit Satellite). However, as The Reg pointed out, there would have been little point in repurposing the constellation for satellite navigation. OneWeb's satellites are designed for internet connectivity – more Starlink than sat-nav. The 150kg satellites operate in the Ku-band and the constellation may deliver speeds of "more than 400Mbps".
Starlink [9]was granted a licence from comms regulator Ofcom in November and began a trial of its services in January.
While the commercial discussions and technical meetings between OneWeb and BT will focus on delivery to customers in the UK, there is also scope for the incumbent broadband and telephony slinger to punt OneWeb's connectivity services from low Earth orbit to its corporate customers around the world.
[10]
While any move to improve sluggish speeds and patchy coverage is to be welcomed, the announcement appears to be an admission that BT needs to look beyond its own network to deliver full coverage.
In a statement, BT chief exec Philip Jansen said: "It is clear that greater partnership is needed, both with government and within industry, to ensure connectivity can reach every last corner of the country. Our agreement with OneWeb is an important step to understanding how that goal could be achieved in the future." ®
*Brexit Satellite
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[1] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/networks&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2YNnyHlgs@lzNH7Nb9UOHHgAAAIo&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
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[4] https://www.theregister.com/2021/03/25/uk_pm_johnson_relucant_to/
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2019/07/15/goonhilly_earth_station_opens_data_centre/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2020/06/30/oneweb_bs/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2020/09/21/no_galileo_uk/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2020/06/30/oneweb_bs/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2021/01/11/spacex_wins_ofcom_approval_for/
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[11] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Whatever. Had my Starlink since Feb. While it was a bit up and down to start with. The last 6 weeks its been rock solid and getting just shy of 300Mbits regularly.
@Abominator
"While it was a bit up and down to start with"
I see what you did there… Have one
Well, they must be
doing something right.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-56906121
Re: Well, they must be
They also have the advantage of being in partnership with an organisation that seems intent on undermining its own connectivity.
A relative of mine has been in a rural "not spot" for some years, but BT/OpenReach have finally made FTTP available - at least in theory. The first order went through a local BT business franchise and mysteriously disappeared. The second order was placed directly with BT and a site survey was completed.
A lone engineer eventually appeared to do the installation and discovered that, despite the site survey, he'd need to run fibre over 4 poles rather than from just the one he was anticipating. Somewhat later, 4 engineers turned up and discovered that, despite the site survey, one of the intermediate poles had not been inspected sufficiently recently for it to be deemed safe to climb. Somewhat later, a cherry picker arrived and the driver, despite the site survey, deemed the road too steep to be able to use it safely. Very quickly, everyone disappeared.
You can see how it might just be easier to launch a constellation of satellites.
an interesting bit of trivia is each post box has the initials of the reigning monarch when it was installed.