OneWeb readies for Australia launch
January 24, 2022
By Chris Forrester
OneWeb has linked with two Australian telecommunications organisations to offer its satellite broadband service.
The deals will see Vocus and Field Solutions Group (FSG), resell OneWeb’s wholesale and retail Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite connectivity services to consumers, governments and enterprises in Australia.
Vocus was announced as OneWeb’s first distribution partner in Australia in December 2021 and says it hopes to launch connectivity to its first commercial clients by mid-2022. While Vocus already has one of the most extensive fiber networks in rural regions in Western Australia and the Northern Territories, the deal with OneWeb will greatly enhance its ability to provide connectivity services to the most remote sites using Vocus fibre as its core backbone and OneWeb LEO in other areas.
FSG, OneWeb’s second Australian distribution partner, is a rural connectivity specialist which started by offering fixed wireless access and National Broadband Network (NBN) services to rural communities across Australia.
The Australian news comes closely after OneWeb and its Bharti/Hughes colleagues and investors signed similar deals covering India.
Bharti is a 42.2 percent owner of OneWeb with Eutelsat owning 22.9 percent. The UK government holds a significant stake while SoftBank, Hughes Network Systems and Hanwha Systems are also shareholders