Viasat announced a partnership with Microsoft to expand internet access in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, Mexico, and Guatemala among other countries. They are the first satellite telecommunications company to partner with Airband, and together they will intensify efforts in these areas.
The first-of-its kind partnership between Airband and Facebook is an important step in bringing internet access to a quarter of a billion people across the world, including 100 million people on the continent of Africa.
L-3 Communications is working with Inmarsat plc to take satellite connectivity to remote areas on a global scale. By combining their expertise and assets, the companies will enable telehealth, distance learning, education, agriculture and much more. They’ll collaborate on the provision of satellite connectivity and wireless communication technologies that offer the transformational provision of power and connectivity such as geostationary orbit constellations in addition to earth station sites.
“We believe access to the internet is a fundamental right, and that digital skills create and enable economic prosperity for people, businesses, and governments,” said Teresa Hutson, Microsoft’s vice president of Technology and Corporate Responsibility. “Through our Airband Initiative, we will extend high-speed internet access to 100 million people on the continent of Africa, and to a quarter of a billion people living in underserved areas across the world.”
Over a third of the world’s population is lacking online access to education, better medical care, business opportunities, connection with family and more. And most of this population lives in just 20 countries across Africa and the Global South. Universal, affordable internet access is part of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and by focusing our partnership on Africa, Microsoft and Viasat are working to deliver connectivity and digital literacy for better education, healthcare and economic opportunity in critical markets.
Bringing affordable internet service to the world is a challenging, bold goal that Viasat is committed to achieving. We’re proud to partner with Microsoft as it represents another step in this journey. By working together, we can break down barriers and make significant progress toward digital equity and inclusion.
Microsoft has been working to expand the internet access coverage into rural and underserved communities through airband. We’ve connected more than 51 million people globally since 2017, including 4 million in unserved U.S. rural communities and an additional 47 million in 16 unserved and underserved countries outside the U.S. We believe everyone should have access to the internet and relevant digital skills, so we’re supporting those efforts by enabling new ways of reaching vulnerable communities around the world through partnerships with local, regional internet and energy access providers, telecom equipment makers, nonprofits, governmental and nongovernmental organizations.
Viasat is a global communications company that specializes in satellite communications technologies and services. Today, the company focuses on connecting unserved and underserved communities for the first time ever.
As part of our mission to connect everyone anywhere on this planet, we’re excited to partner with Viasat. Together, we can provide advanced satellite connectivity and further ongoing innovation with the mission to imagine and build the world’s best connected experience.
Viasat is a global communications company that believes that everyone and everything in the world can be connected with high-quality, secure, affordable, and fast connections. Viasat has been developing the ultimate network to connect people anywhere they are to help shape communication for the past 34 years. To learn more about them, visit: www.viasat.com, go to Viasat’s Corporate Blog, or follow them on social media at: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter or YouTube.
Microsoft is entering into a new era of the intelligent cloud, and they’re providing tools to help companies make their way through it. The ultimate goal of their mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet so that they can achieve more.
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