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LONDON, Nov 30 (Reuters) – Britain will trial using low Earth orbit satellites to provide high-speed internet connections to remote homes and businesses, with initial sites supported by equipment provided by Elon Musk’s Starlink system.
The government said on Wednesday that it would start with Starlink “given the readiness and availability of its technology”. It said it was also in discussions with other providers such as British satellite company OneWeb.
Musk’s SpaceX rocket company activated Starlink, a largely consumer-based service with thousands of Internet users in Ukraine, after Russia’s invasion in February.
It has since provided Kiev with thousands of terminals, allowing Ukrainians to connect to the Internet in places beyond the reach of the local system.
In Britain, an outdoor activity center in Snowdonia National Park in Wales and a mountain rescue base in the Lake District of north-west England will be among the locations where the equipment will be installed, allowing them to connect to satellites and access broadband up to 10 times faster. Previously available.
“High-speed broadband beamed to Earth from space could be the answer to the connectivity problems suffered by people on premises stuck in the digital slow lane,” Digital Minister Michelle Donnellan said.
“The aim of this trial is to find a solution to the prohibitively high cost of laying cables in remote locations.”
The government said that after the trial it would consider the feasibility of using satellite technology to connect “very hard to reach” locations, less than 1% of sites that are too difficult to upgrade via expensive physical cables, such as small islands or mountainous areas.
As well as testing the technical capability of the satellites, the trial will see what benefits faster internet connections will bring to these locations, the government said.
Reporting by Kylie McLellan; Editing by Alison Williams
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
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