The British satellite company Inmarsat is about to offer the “world’s first” high-speed mobile broadband service – Global Xpress.
On February 1 the Inmarsat-5 F2 is set to launch at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The company has pumped over $1.6bn into the development of Global Xpress. It will deliver the first high-speed mobile broadband service via a single network operator – available across the globe.
The sixth generation satellites were built by Boeing Satellite Systems International in California. International Launch Services is in charge of its launch – using a Proton launch vehicle.
The company says that Global Xpress will offer broadband speeds more than 100 times faster than the company’s fourth-generation constellation.
Global Xpress will help companies and governments around the world improve connectivity and offer more access in remote parts of the world where internet access is scarce.
“Global Xpress is a truly transformational technology and, as we complete its global rollout, 2015 promises to be one of the most significant chapters in our company’s history,” said Rupert Pearce, CEO of Inmarsat.
“Through Global Xpress, the world can move forward from the ‘internet of everything’ to the ‘internet of everywhere’, in which high-speed, reliable and secure connectivity is available anywhere and at any time, even in the most inaccessible regions, for customers on the move or to fixed locations.”
In June 2014, Inmarsat announced that it would be launching a new S-band satellite, called Europsat – a move to bring Europe in line with the US.
Europsat’s currently has direct air-to-ground links over the 30MHz S-band spectrum offering 4G connections to the all member states of the EU.
Inmarsat says that Europsat will offer high-speed connections to flights, and be at the forefront of next-generation emergency network services for disaster relief and public protection.