 |
 |
||
|
|
||
SpaceX, Amazon engage in satellite spat SpaceX and Amazon are taking swipes at each other even before they both launch competing satellite broadband services. In this early round, they're duking it out at the FCC and on Twitter over Starlink's proposal to lower the orbits of thousands of satellites. Amazon, which is pursuing a low-Earth orbit satellite broadband service under the "Project Kuiper" initiative, objects to the plans for SpaceX's Starlink service, holding that lowering the orbits could raise the potential for satellite collisions and cause harmful radio interference. Amazon also thinks the proposed changes could "hamstring competition among satellite systems." SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter to address Amazon's objections, arguing they don't serve the public interest.
SpaceX holds that its modified plan envisions a 10 Gbit/s downlink capability – versus the current 100 Mbit/s capabilities – along with a 30-millisecond roundtrip latency. SpaceX also attempted to address objections to its plan at the FCC. In a filing (PDF) last week describing a meeting between SpaceX Director of Satellite Policy David Goldman and FCC officials, the company held that its LEO-based system uses autonomous collision avoidance systems and that it is committed to "keeping space clean."
Click here for a larger version of this image.
Source: SpaceX via FCC filing. In its slide show for the FCC, SpaceX also asserted that Amazon "has engaged in [a] continuous carping to undermine authorizations from competitors." Amazon responded to SpaceX's and Musk's arguments via Twitter:
In follow-up tweets, Amazon argued that the proposed Starlink changes do indeed create a more dangerous environment for collisions in space and increased radio interference. "Despite what SpaceX posts on Twitter, it is SpaceX's proposed changes that would hamstring competition among satellite systems," Amazon added. "It is clearly in SpaceX's interest to smother competition in the cradle if they can, but it is certainly not in the public’s interest." For more about the SpaceX-Amazon spat, details about Project Kuiper and why another Starlink competitor, Viasat, is also objecting to SpaceX's proposed plan, please see this story at Light Reading: SpaceX, Amazon spar over Starlink's modified satellite plan.
Related posts:
— Jeff Baumgartner, Senior Editor, Light Reading, special to Broadband World News |
Charter has sparked RDOF work in all 24 states where it won bids. The cable op booked about $19 million in RDOF revenues in Q1, and expects to have about $9 million per month come in over the next ten years.
Launch of 2-Gig and 5-Gig FTTP tiers in 70-plus markets puts more pressure on cable ops to enhance their existing DOCSIS 3.1 network or accelerate their upgrade activity centered on the new DOCSIS 4.0 specs.
Ziply Fiber, an operator that tangles with Comcast and Charter, has launched two multi-gigabit tiers in 60 urban areas, aiming for all markets by Q2 2022.
Elon Musk's nascent broadband will need to radically accelerate the rate of satellite launches – and navigate tricky supply chain logistics – if it's going to come close to fulfilling its global ambition.
MoffettNathanson questions whether mobile operators will have the network capacity and the right business metrics to back their aggressive stance and forecasts for fixed wireless home broadband.
 WebinarsARCHIVED
Wednesday, September 14, 2022
1:00 p.m. New York / 6:00 p.m. London When your broadband business adds new services and connected devices, do they also add complexity, slowing customer support teams as they navigate multiple data sources to uncover connectivity issues? We’ve worked with hundreds of support teams to help them implement a subscriber experience management platform that gives greater visibility into subscriber issues. They can proactively troubleshoot amid complexity—improving the subscriber experience and raising customer satisfaction ratings like Net Promoter Scores. Join this webinar with experts from Calix and global research leader Omdia who will share exclusive research about how you can:
|
|
|
||
