Meet OneWeb, the global communications company building a capability to deliver broadband satellite internet services worldwide. Their goal of bringing the internet to “everyone, everywhere” will be achieved through a network of satellites operating in low Earth orbit (LEO).
OneWeb and COVID-19: A Rocky Road
The company, which was founded in 2012, has undergone some financial difficulties, notably narrowly avoiding insolvency in 2020. In March 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 stock market crash, OneWeb was forced to reduce its workforce from 531 employees to 74 and considering bankruptcy. Then, on the 27th March 2020, OneWeb filed for bankruptcy in the United States, stating the pandemic as the reason.
However, on the 3rd July 2020, Bharti Enterprises Global, an Indian multinational conglomerate company and the Government of the United Kingdom won the auction to purchase the bankrupt company, each investing US$500 million for equal stakes in OneWeb Global. The shares amount to roughly 42%, and the rest are held by other creditors.
The Mission Continues:
Since autumn, OneWeb had an intense period of hires, with over 200 employees joining the company. Less than two weeks ago, OneWeb launched another 36 satellites into orbit from Russia’s far east spaceport Vostochny Cosmodrome.
This addition brings OneWeb’s total number of satellites in orbit to 146. The company aims to deliver three more launches by the end of the year, bringing it closer to its 648 LEO satellite fleet that will deliver high-speed, low-latency global connectivity.
The launch forms part of the company’s “Five to Fifty” launch series. This programme aims to deliver connectivity to all regions north of fifty degrees latitude by the end of 2021.
The “Five to Fifty” series will cover the United Kingdom, Alaska, Northern Europe, Greenland, Iceland, the Arctic Seas and Canada. The next step for OneWeb will be global coverage by 2022.
OneWeb and Space X’s Starlink: The Space Race of the 21st Century
Although the outlook appears positive for the rescued OneWeb, there is one caveat: competition from Elon Musk’s Starlink. Starlink is the latest weapon in Elon Musk’s arsenal. Much like OneWeb, it is a satellite internet constellation being constructed by SpaceX providing satellite Internet access.
It will also operate using LEO technology and also aims to provide global internet coverage. In what is being dubbed the space race of the 21st century, OneWeb and Starlink appear to be neck and neck, with other players such as Facebook and Amazon lagging.
Starlink is in its beta phase and is being tested by thousands of consumers worldwide, and it appears promising. With already more than 1200 satellites in orbit, the company has already surpassed expectations. Independent speed tests carried out on Starlink’s satellite broadband service find the service it overtakes its promised 150Mbits/sec download speed. True to form, Musk has promised that speeds will double later this year.
What’s more is that despite the UK partially owning OneWeb, Starlink has managed to secure a deal in which it will supply broadband to the UK and UK customers have already signed up for trials. Starlink has partnered with telecoms mast company Arquiva that will provide ground stations and infrastructure which Musk’s company will use for communication.
On top of this, Starlink is set to launch in the Philippines, one of the worst countries for the internet. The Philippines has over 7000 islands, and the launch of Starlink will be telling of the functionality of satellites over land-based infrastructure.
There has been some criticism surrounding the intensive internet space race at the moment, and the impact that launching thousands of satellites into space will have on future generations. This does not seem to be at the forefront of the company’s minds. In this case, the winner of the space race will truly take it all.
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