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The deal will see Eutelsat’s OneWeb constellation provide satellite communications for Japanese businesses and government agencies
Eutelsat and Softbank have signed a multi-year partnership to enable Softbank to use Eutelsat’s OneWeb low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite connectivity services in its communications offering.
Eutelsat’s OneWeb currently has 634 satellites in orbit around the Earth, providing global coverage of low latency satellite services.
The deal will allow Softbank to leverage this constellation across Japan, providing reliable bandwidth and guaranteed communication speed services to its customers, including corporations and government entities. The service will be directly integrated with SoftBank’s secure “SmartVPN” network, enhancing its communication security.
Initially focusing on the Japanese market, the partnership also holds potential for expansion to Japanese customers in other regions.
“By using the OneWeb low Earth orbit constellation it becomes possible to use high-quality, highly secure satellite communications services in places such as maritime and mountainous areas where connectivity is difficult to provide with terrestrial mobile networks,” said Masakatsu Kawahara, SoftBank’s Vice President, Head of Communication Service Division in a press release.
“This will enable us to promote digital transformation in various industries and for local governments, heralding a new era in secure, ubiquitous connectivity services,” he continued.
“Our partnership with SoftBank is a significant milestone in our mission to deliver innovative connectivity solutions globally. We are delighted to rely on SoftBank as our partner to enter the Japanese market, and we look forward to cementing and expanding our collaboration in the years to come,” echoed Cyril Dujardin, Co-President of Eutelsat’s Connectivity Business Unit.
Last month, Eutelsat also signed a partnership with Bayobab, a subsidiary of MTN Group, to use its LEO satellites to improve digital connectivity across Africa.
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