Satellite Networks

Pan-African telecoms and network services provider Paratus Group announced on Wednesday that it is expanding into Rwanda, where it will provide and install Starlink LEO satellite services for businesses in the country.

Malaysian satellite operator MEASAT announced on Wednesday it has signed a strategic alliance agreement with Chinese companies Guodian Gaoke and StarWin to offer IoT services in Malaysia supported by Guodian Gaoke’s “Tianqi” LEO satellite constellation.

The direct-to-device (D2D) satellite connectivity business has been back in the headlines with the, potentially, highly significant news that two satcoms businesses, Lynk Global, a patented and commercially licensed D2D system, and Omnispace, which says it is delivering a unique, 5G-based ‘one global network’, are to merge. But how will this affect the developing world?

UAE-based satellite firm Space42 announced at GITEX Global 2025 in Dubai on Tuesday it has signed an MoU with e& UAE to explore collaboration in direct-to-device (D2D) satellite connectivity via Space42’s Equatys venture with Viasat.

Myanmar is making telecoms news headlines yet again – and yet again this news is receiving attention well beyond the specialist press. This time it’s because the scam centre business that has burgeoned in the country is allegedly being enabled, in part, by satellite communications provider Starlink.

The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) of Bahrain late last week announced the launch of a public consultation on what it calls a landmark proposal to authorise satellite direct-to-device (D2D) services in Bahrain.

Pan-African operator Airtel Africa has announced what it calls a historic breakthrough for African railways connectivity: the successful testing of satellite internet on a moving train in sub-Saharan Africa.

Hungarian company 4iG Space and Defence (4iG SDT) says it has signed a preliminary, non-binding commitment letter with US-based Axiom Space, a global leader in commercial spaceflight and low Earth orbit (LEO) infrastructure development.

Karrier One, which describes itself as a leader in decentralised telecom infrastructure, has announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with global satellite communications company Iridium to integrate Iridium NTN Direct IoT capabilities into the Karrier One ecosystem.

The government of Mauritania has indicated that it intends to develop a national space programme focused on nanosatellites to strengthen sovereign capabilities and support overall economic development.

Globalstar, a next-generation telecommunications infrastructure and technology provider, together with its wholly owned subsidiary, Globalstar Europe SAS, has announced that the construction process has begun on doubling the size of its existing ground station in Estonia.

A new agreement announced this week between Amazon's Project Kuiper low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite broadband network and Kazakhtelecom, the largest telecommunication company in Kazakhstan, aims to bring high-speed satellite internet to communities throughout Kazakhstan.

SoftBank Corp tested new innovation in High Altitude Platform Station (HAPS) technology that can beam stable 5G connectivity from the sky to the ground, as the company advances in the nascent technology that can plug coverage gap in rural areas.

UAE-based satellite player Space42 and global satellite operator Viasat announced on Monday they plan to form a joint venture called Equatys that will offer global direct-to-device (D2D) satellite services whilst also promising to evolve mobile satellite services (MSS) to a 5G non-terrestrial network (NTN) environment.

SpaceX has launched Pasifik Satelit Nusantara (PSN)’s long-delayed Nusantara Lima (N5) satellite into geostationary orbit to provide satellite broadband connectivity to Indonesia and surrounding areas.

Hughes do Brasil, a subsidiary of Hughes Network Systems, a major name in satellite and managed network services, and Soil Tecnologia, a startup in automation and monitoring solutions for central pivot systems, have announced a partnership that, the companies say, aims to bring connectivity and automation to agribusiness irrigation projects in every corner of Brazil.

Apogeo Space, an Italian SME that says it is developing the first private national constellation of picosatellites for IoT telecommunications, has announced a strategic agreement with Telespazio Brasil to expand its picosatellite IoT services into the Latin American market.

The government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has confirmed that talks are still ongoing with satellite company Monacosat over launching a satellite to boost the country’s connectivity.

A statement from Vietnam's Ministry of Science and Technology, following a meeting this week between a minister and a Project Kuiper representative, indicates that Amazon is aiming to deploy its Kuiper satellite services in Vietnam.

UAE-based satellite operator Space42 announced on Tuesday it has signed a comprehensive MoU with Angola's Military Intelligence and Security Service (SISM) to collaborate on developing advanced technologies across multiple domains over the next five years.

PLDT Enterprise, the business arm of PLDT, announced on Tuesday it has partnered with the provincial government of Camarines Sur in the Bicol region on Luzon to integrate Starlink’s LEO satellite technology into its operations.

Pixxel, an Indian space technology company, has announced that a consortium it leads, along with partners Dhruva Space, PierSight and SatSure, has been selected by the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) to design, build, own, and operate a national Earth observation constellation under a public-private partnership (PPP) framework.

PLDT Enterprise, the corporate arm of PLDT, announced on Tuesday it has signed a deal to resell Starlink’s LEO satellite broadband in the Philippines to businesses in underserved and hard-to-reach locations.

Global satellite operator Eutelsat said on Monday it has signed an agreement with Tata Group’s satellite communication service provider Nelco Limited to deliver Eutelsat OneWeb LEO satellite connectivity services across the India region.

Chinese LEO satellite operator Geespace reportedly launched another batch of 11 LEO satellites into orbit on Saturday, bringing it past the halfway point of the first phase of its planned constellation.

AST SpaceMobile, which is building a space-based cellular broadband network accessible directly by everyday smartphones and designed for both commercial and government applications, has announced an agreement to acquire global S-Band spectrum priority rights held under the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

Chinese LEO satellite operator Shanghai SpaceSail Technologies has reportedly tested its satellite broadband network in the Almaty region of Kazakhstan.

Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation (KALRO), a research institution dedicated to enhancing agricultural productivity and rural development in Kenya, has partnered with SatSure Analytics India, a leading Earth Observation (EO) data refinery platform, to revolutionise agricultural productivity and resilience in Kenya through the use of advanced satellite data and analytics.

Satellite communications firm EchoStar is moving ahead with plans to join the global direct-to-device (D2D) satellite race via a new LEO satellite constellation, and has awarded an initial US$1.3 billion contract to MDA Space to help build it.

Eutelsat said on Wednesday it has signed a new agreement with India-based maritime communications firm Station Satcom to incorporate Eutelsat’s OneWeb LEO satellite services into its maritime connectivity portfolio.

Space42, a UAE-based spacetech company, has announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with tech giant Microsoft and GIS mapping software specialist Esri to deliver high-resolution, scalable base maps across all 54 African countries, serving over 1.4 billion people.

Satellite operator SES announced on Tuesday it has launched its latest pair of O3b mPOWER satellites, bringing its next-gen constellation to ten MEO satellites providing global coverage.