If you haven’t heard of Amazon’s Kuiper satellite internet launches, don’t feel bad. This hasn’t been a widely publicized project by Blue Origin this year. That doesn’t mean it’s not an exciting prospect to think about. With Blue Origin and Starlink gearing up for the satellite internet matchup of the decade, people often overlook some announcements over the year. If you’ve missed this one, it’s time to play catchup.
Blue Origin Heads for low-Earth Orbit
Blue Origin’s main competitors are Starlink, Hughesnet, and Viasat. With rural areas more in need of satellite internet than ever before, all of these companies are in a race to space. Blue Origin just cemented a deal that required the cooperation of Arianespace and United Launch Alliance. As the next five years go by, Amazon’s Blue Origin will launch literally thousands of satellites into the sky (specifically, low-orbit Earth).
Dave Limp, the Senior Vice President of Amazon Devices and Services, released a statement about the achievement and what it means for the brand. “Project Kuiper will provide fast, affordable broadband to tens of millions of customers in unserved and underserved communities around the world.” It’s a nice prospect for the company, but none of the advancements will happen overnight.
A Project that Spans Years
Project Kuiper is going to get off the ground in a hurry, but it will take time to get satellites into low-Earth orbit. That means it’s going to span a whopping five years just to get the desired number of satellites into the sky. In internet era terms, five years is a lifetime. So it’s still shaky as to how profitable this will be for Amazon and Blue Origin in the long term. After all, a lot can change in five years. It’s possible that by the time everything’s up there and ready to go, another type of internet technology will render satellite obsolete. While that’s unlikely to happen, it does demonstrate just how quickly things change in broadband.
The launches themselves will number 38 on the Vulcan Centaur heavy launch vehicle by United Launch. Another 18 launches will take place at Arianespace, a European company. Launch partners are vital to internet providers like Blue Origin and Starlink. While many people don’t have a firm grasp of why the satellites are going into space or the enormous manpower and technology it takes to get them there, what they do know is that it spells faster and more widely available internet than ever before.
Amazon’s Blue Origin Launches a New Era
How proud is Amazon of its launch plan? They’re so proud that they called it the “largest commercial procurement of launched vehicles in history.” They’re determined to leave their mark on satellite internet and finally usher in a new era in rural broadband. For those who live way outside of the city, there are only well wishes as Amazon undertakes its new launch project.
It’ll be interesting to see how Starlink and other competitors respond to Amazon’s move. Will they announce more of their own launches soon or offer a rebuttal to Amazon’s way of doing things? It’s a whole new kind of space race for this new generation of giants, and Amazon’s Blue Origin looks to be the biggest giant of them all at the end of the day.
