The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved the satellite Internet project first suggested by Boeing in 2017. Boeing now joins the ranks of its main competitor SpaceX, which can build, launch and operate its own space broadband Internet service.
Boeing’s plan includes launching 132 satellites into low-Earth orbits of 1,056 kilometers and launching another 15 satellites into “non-geostationary orbits” at altitudes of 27,355 to 44,221 kilometers.
The company said it hopes to use these satellites to provide broadband Internet and communication services to residents, governments, and corporate users in the United States, Puerto Rico, and the U.S., and expand it to the world after the network is built.
All 147 Boeing satellites will operate in the V band, which is a higher part of the wireless spectrum than the Ka and Ku bands used by SpaceX Starlink Internet or Project Kuiper satellites that have not yet been deployed by Amazon. Using the V-band can achieve faster data transmission rates, but there is also a greater risk of interference, because the higher the frequency, the more difficult it is to penetrate solid objects.
SpaceX plans to use V-band on some future satellites, as does OneWeb. The Ka and Ku frequency bands are also used by commercial airlines’ satellites that provide in-flight Internet.
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SpaceX has previously stated that Boeing’s launch of more satellites into the already crowded low-Earth orbit may increase the risk of collisions with other satellites. In 2019, SpaceX told the FCC that the company believes that Boeing’s satellite network will create a “significant danger of harmful interference.” But the FCC dismissed these concerns and asked the two companies to cooperate in good faith to eliminate potential interference issues.
SpaceX’s Starlink satellites orbit the earth at an altitude of approximately 550 kilometers, which is similar to the Internet satellite clusters of OneWeb and Amazon. Earlier this year, SpaceX and OneWeb satellites nearly collided.
Boeing now has six years to launch half of the satellites and nine years to deploy the entire network. It is reported that Boeing had previously requested the FCC to relax these requirements, hoping to launch only five satellites in the first six years, and requested the launch of all satellites within 12 years. However, the FCC rejected Boeing’s request.
In contrast, SpaceX and Amazon’s respective satellite Internet plans are more ambitious, with each network consisting of thousands of satellites. Boeing is a very important satellite manufacturer. The company has been selling satellites to early space Internet providers in the years before and after the satellite Internet project was proposed in 2017.
In the statement, Boeing acknowledged that the satellite Internet proposed by the company will be one of many space-based Internet systems on the market. The company said: “As the demand for satellite communications grows, in order to meet the unique needs of customers, the orbit and frequency will need to be diversified. We believe that the V-band will help provide this diversity. Although the FCC is reviewing the application, We are still working to identify compelling use cases for the V-band and refine the underlying technology.”
Boeing did not disclose when it plans to launch its satellite Internet service. But in 2019, the company launched the 702X satellite, capable of operating in low-Earth orbit and providing Internet connectivity. According to the Boeing website: “So far, more than 50 satellites have been launched.”
The FCC also pointed out: “Approval of this application will enable Boeing to provide broadband and communication services to residential, commercial, institutional, government and professional users in the United States and around the world.”
