What Happens When The Whole World Is Wired?

In our hyper-wired world, it’s hard to imagine that just a skimpy 35% of the global population has Internet access. The promise of getting that remaining 65% -- or at least some of it -- is a cornucopia of economic temptation.

“Broadband is one of the most enabling technologies of our lifetime,” says Steve Collar, CEO of O3B Networks. “But you can’t run fiber through the Amazon, or through the mountains of Pakistan.” Instead, by the end of 2014, Collar’s Stockholm-based company plans to put 12 satellites into orbit that will deliver 3G networks to large swaths of emerging markets. But unlike the satellites that already deliver a connection, O3B’s infrastructure will live much closer to Earth’s surface. So while Direct TV’s satellites hover at 22,500 miles away from Earth, O3B’s are at 8,000 -- cutting down costs. That proximity eliminates the signal delay, but still offers enough coverage per satellite. “We can just get more data through and more bandwidth through,” Collar says. “We’re really in the sweet spot.” O3B is testing in the Cook Islands in March, with a projected launch in May 2014.