More on O3B Sat-Based Wireless Internet

By Doug Lung
published

Two weeks ago I reported on Google's funding of a project to offer satellite Internet connectivity to the "other three billion" (O3B) people without access to the Internet. Russell Southwood, at MyBroadband.co.za talked to one of the entrepreneurs behind the plan and received some more information on the systems.

O3B will not be selling bandwidth to consumers. Initial service from the eight MEO satellites will reach only the African continent through 30 spot beams, each 500 kilometers in diameter. Each spot beam provides a combined 1.25 Gbps upload and download data rates. O3B sees the service being used instead of fiber or microwave links to provide connectivity to remote mobile phone, WiMAX, EVDO and similar cell sites. A 3.5-meter satellite dish is needed at the Earth station, along with a terminal.

See Southwood's article Google Satellite bandwidth details for more information.

Doug Lung
Doug Lung

Doug Lung is one of America's foremost authorities on broadcast RF technology. As vice president of Broadcast Technology for NBCUniversal Local, H. Douglas Lung leads NBC and Telemundo-owned stations’ RF and transmission affairs, including microwave, radars, satellite uplinks, and FCC technical filings. Beginning his career in 1976 at KSCI in Los Angeles, Lung has nearly 50 years of experience in broadcast television engineering. Beginning in 1985, he led the engineering department for what was to become the Telemundo network and station group, assisting in the design, construction and installation of the company’s broadcast and cable facilities. Other projects include work on the launch of Hawaii’s first UHF TV station, the rollout and testing of the ATSC mobile-handheld standard, and software development related to the incentive auction TV spectrum repack.
A longtime columnist for TV Technology, Doug is also a regular contributor to IEEE Broadcast Technology. He is the recipient of the 2023 NAB Television Engineering Award. He also received a Tech Leadership Award from TV Tech publisher Future plc in 2021 and is a member of the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society and the Society of Broadcast Engineers.