Satellite Internet Connects Three UK Villages for Government Pilot Program

[Via Satellite 04-14-2016] London-based Internet Service Provider (ISP) Satellite Internet has connected the third and final village selected to take part in a U.K. government-funded Market Test Pilot (MTP). The company established high-speed satellite connectivity at Broomfield in North Somerset, following deployments in Luxborough and Simonsbath, also in Somerset, last year.

Working closely with Connecting Devon & Somerset (CDS), Broomfield Parish Council and the wider community, Satellite Internet provided 24 properties with broadband connectivity speeds of up to 25Mbps within seven weeks. Previously, these properties had broadband speeds below 2Mbps.

The MTP project is part of a wider government program involving six other deployments across the U.K. in order to assess which technologies and commercial models are best suited to deliver superfast broadband to the hardest-to-reach areas. Satellite Internet’s project uses a Satellite Distribution Node (SDN) and a Wi-Fi head-end installed at a central location. The broadband connection is then supplied to end-users via a Fixed Access Wireless (FAW) network, while properties unreachable by wireless have an individual Direct-to-Home (DTH) dish installed.

Households that signed up to the trial received substantially increased broadband speeds, leading, so far, to more than 60 percent of residents retaining the service on a normal commercial basis following the end of the trial period, according to Satellite Internet. The program is based on SES Techcom’s Astra Connect For Communities model.