Amazon hopes to offer a satellite broadband service in the UK within the next two years as it prepares to launch a constellation of spacecraft that could ultimately deliver a mobile signal to even the most remote areas.
The technology company, founded by Jeff Bezos, said it would seek access to British radio frequencies “over the next one to two years” as it prepares to offer satellite internet, according to a regulatory filing. presentation first reported by Sunday Telegraph.
Companies are rushing to build and launch their own clusters of satellites into low-Earth orbit. If a single system launches enough smaller satellites within 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) of the Earth’s surface, it can provide continuous coverage, without the delays inevitable for geostationary satellites 35,000 kilometers away.
Amazon’s Project Kuiper subsidiary plans to launch 3,000 small satellites in a bid to compete directly with Starlink, the satellite internet subsidiary of billionaire Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
Starlink already allows users to connect to its low-Earth orbit satellites through small terminals, and has a dominant lead in the sector with 6,000 satellites already in space. The company has 4 million customers worldwide and its terminals have been used extensively in the Ukrainian war.
Kuiper also plans to use terminals at first, but has also told British regulator Ofcom that it is exploring options for direct-to-device services, which connect smartphones directly to satellites.
Ofcom said direct-to-device connections could be available to consumers from this year, pending a consultation in the coming months.
Direct-to-device services could “present a secure communications option for government, defense, and emergency response use cases,” Amazon said in the documents. The company called on Ofcom to grant satellite providers access to the radio spectrum “on all frequencies allocated for land mobile services and in all geographical areas”, provided they can demonstrate they will not interfere with existing mobile networks.
Amazon was initially scheduled to launch its first commercial satellites at the end of last year, although it has been delayed until earlier this year despite launching its first prototypes in 2023.
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Bezos’ rocket company, Blue Origin, is separately preparing to launch a new reusable rocket, New Glenn, this week. The rocket, named after the first American to orbit the Earth, will once again compete with SpaceX. Musk’s company’s reusable Falcon 9 has revolutionized the space industry by dramatically reducing costs.
Amazon has been contacted for comment.