Satellite Hot Spot uses capacity on Spacecom’s Amos 5 satellite to provide connectivity to remote areas with only on-site satellite dishes and routers required to receive the signal. Maxwell Technology said the product is aimed at rural entrepreneurs wanting to set up Internet cafes, lodges and hotels situated in remote areas and even wireless operators looking for a stable alternative or addition to their terrestrial infrastructure.

   “Broadband rollout is perceived as a vital driver of desperately needed job creation in South Africa … However, finding the right business model for low-income areas where computers are in short supply has proved to be difficult,” Maxwell Technology Technical Director Kallie Carlsen said in a statement. “The problem has always been the high costs of putting in terrestrial infrastructure as against the lower rate of return. Satellite has always seemed to be the best technical alternative but, again, the business model hasn’t been right — until now. When we came across this product, we were blown away because it has the potential to turn this sector on its head.”