June 22, 2017
Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s ViaSat – the newest provider offering broadband connectivity. The company has been building broadband-providing satellites since 2016, and successfully launched its ViaSat-2 satellite into orbit last week. Built by Boeing Commercial Satellite Systems, the company’s ViaSat-2 will be able to deliver at least 100 megabits per second to individual subscribers, and plans to begin offering services in early 2018. And ViaSat isn’t slowing down. The company plans to launch the ViaSat-3 by the end of 2019, which will be capable of carrying a total network capacity of 1 Terabit per second (about three times what ViaSat-2 can now deliver).
Currently, fiber optic networks remain the fastest technology capable of delivering up to hundreds of MBps, and without weather interference. Satellite-delivered broadband services, however, have the potential to expand access to rural areas and hard to reach terrain. That’s a win-win for all Americans – regardless of zip code!