Xplore Inc., a Canadian rural internet provider, has successfully launched its Jupiter 3 satellite into space, preparing to challenge billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk's SpaceX Starlink internet service.
Based in New Brunswick, the company said in a statement that the new technology will provide a homegrown alternative to broadband internet service currently offered to rural Canadians through SpaceX's Starlink low-earth orbit satellites.
Jupiter 3 Satellite Launches Into Space
The company's president and chief commercial officer, Rizwan Jamal, also said that his company's new broadband service will provide plans with speeds of 100 megabits per second. This number represents double the maximum speed that Xplore currently offers its customers for satellite internet.
Other benefits of the soon-to-be internet service include professional installation, no upfront hardware costs, and 24/7 Canada-based customer support. Jamal touted the brand new satellite that the company launched will become a superhighway for the internet that is ready to take on traffic, in this case, customers, as per Global News.
The new satellite is touted as the highest capacity satellite by EchoStar Corp., a subsidiary of Hughes Network Systems. It was launched on Friday on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It began sending and receiving its first signals on Saturday morning.
The Jupiter 3 satellite will travel to its orbital slot in the next few weeks, where it will undergo final testing so that the company can ensure that it can provide the speeds and coverage it was designed to give. The company's president said that the new broadband service's specific availability and pricing details will be released closer to the service launch after they have completed the testing process.
However, Jamal noted that "most areas inhabited by people" across Canada will be included in Xplore's coverage map for the new internet service. Additionally, the company said it would offer 5G fixed wireless coverage at speeds of at least 100 megabits per second in Atlantic Canada and several other areas later.
Providing an Alternative to SpaceX's Starlink
Before the successful launch of the Jupiter 3 satellite, the mission was delayed to allow more time for vehicle checkouts following an abort situation when there was only a minute left in the countdown. SpaceX did not release any information regarding the little hiccup in the satellite's launch, according to SpaceNews.
The new internet service is set to address the rising demand in the Americas, where it has been losing subscribers as capacity constraints weigh on the business. Recently, EchoStar said that Hughes broadband subscribers were using roughly 15% more bandwidth on average year-on-year as competition in the market continues to intensify.
The new Jupiter 3 satellite allows officials to start once again growing their customer base in their "key markets," where they have been hesitant to add new customers due to capacity limitations. Paul Gaske, the chief operating officer of EchoStar, noted that it would also allow the company to improve its plans for existing customers.
Hughes Network Systems touts the Jupiter 3 satellite as being the largest commercial communications satellite ever built in the history of humanity, said Space.
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