OneWeb Satellite Project Aims to Bring Broadband to Rural Areas

Qualcomm and The Virgin Group announced plans for an ambitious satellite project aimed at bringing broadband service to remote rural areas around the world that cannot get service today. The companies are pursuing the project through a joint venture to be known as OneWeb.

While some broadband offerings rely on a single geostationary satellite, OneWeb plans to launch a total of 648 micro satellites that will operate in low earth orbits -- an approach that should enable OneWeb to offer lower latency service than can be delivered by geostationary satellites, which operate in more distant orbits. The satellite broadband service is targeted to be available in approximately four years, a Virgin spokesperson said. He declined to reveal target pricing or speeds per customer -- although he did say that each satellite will support eight terabytes per second. He also noted that the satellites will operate in the K and Ku bands.