Vodafone is taking action to bring ultra-fast internet to the most remote areas of the Spanish countryside. The telecommunications company is preparing the technology to fully enter the business of connectivity and commercial satellite voice and data services to every corner of empty Spain, where the distribution of fiber optics is not technically or economically feasible.
Vodafone is thus preparing to challenge the Hispasat satellite group, The company that last year gave new impetus to the wholesale sale of ultra-fast satellite internet services in rural Spain and was provisionally selected by the Government as the winner of a regulated and subsidized connection service in hitherto no coverage areas. affordable prices (35 euros per month for the end customer).
Vodafone Spain has completed the implementation of a series of pilot projects to test Satellite voice and data services in alliance with AST SpaceMobile groupone of the main shareholders of Vodafone Group and guaranteeing the exclusive use of this technology to telecommunications in the markets in which it operates. The plans call for these tests to be enabled this summer, after obtaining mandatory regulatory approvals for the use of radioelectric spectrum from the European Commission and the Spanish Government.
The goal of the telecommunications company is to fine-tune the technology to launch. First satellite mobile broadband service that connects directly to standard mobile phones In Spain, without the need for other infrastructures or facilities to provide coverage to regions (especially satellite dishes), as the company explained on the eve of its launch Mobile World Congress (MWC)will be held this week in Barcelona.
Vodafone announced the successful deployment of the BlueWalker 3 communications satellite last November and plans to test it in collaboration with AST SpaceMobile, which has built the world’s first mobile satellite mobile broadband network for unmodified mobile phones. Once up and running, users can, for example, never lose coverage by automatically switching from regular terrestrial to satellite link.
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aim is to provide connection to users from space at broadband speeds regardless of their locationIncluding rural, marine, areas or areas that are very difficult to access, which would be particularly useful to guarantee communication in emergencies or natural or human disasters.
“Customers value connection speed, coverage and price. With this service, speed and coverage will be the same as terrestrial connection. We haven’t developed the business model yet and we haven’t talked about price, but the profession is a service that is neither minority nor elitist”, Vodafone Group Network Director Yago He pointed to Tenorio. “Our goal is to make it reach all customers.”
After the company puts this service into service, Existing land cover footprint in Spain could increase by up to 95% benefiting from this satellite technology and opening up the opportunity to serve approximately 200,000 new potential customers. Government, Digital Spain 2025 Agenda and Healing, Transformation and Resilience PlanGet 100Mbps of data coverage for the entire Spanish population by the middle of this decade (reached 88% of the population in mid-21), and gigabit and 5G connectivity for the entire population by 2030.
AST SpaceMobile plans to request registration of its planned satellite network in Spain and Vodafone Group has decided. The command center for traffic management in the Mediterranean is located in our country -a specific location has not been decided yet, but Malaga is being worked on- and managed by Vodafone Spain. Likewise, a satellite control center is expected to be deployed in Madrid to optimize the operations of the satellite fleet and real-time command and control in conjunction with other AST control centers.
“It is a revolutionary solution that can complement the traditional coverage and is perfectly adapted to the scenario of homes and businesses in rural Spain,” explained Julia Velasco, Network Director, Vodafone Spain. “Our aim is to guarantee everyone access to services and to bridge the digital gap between regions and promote regional cohesion. benefits of a digital society, wherever they live”.