The Aussie telco is trying to get on the same galactic level as SpaceX's Starlink service.
Background: Historically, Aussies in regional Australia have had two internet options: fixed wireless or satellite NBN (provided by the NBN's two Sky Muster satellites). But the satellite internet is patchy, slow and spensy.
What happened: There really wasn't any other option, until Elon Musk stepped in with SpaceX's Starlink satellites. These delivered download speeds of 4 to 8 times faster, and stole a bunch of regional customers from Aussie telcos.
What else: Now, Telstra is partnering with a UK communications company called OneWeb. This crew deliver broadband satellite internet services worldwide via low-earth orbit satellites (LEOs).
💡First, we had the space race. Now, we've got the space internet race.
💡Internet has long been a battleground for Aussie telcos like Optus, Telstra and TPG (we just talked about Optus brawling with Telstra over 5G). But Elon Musk's Starlink satellites - which sit around 60 times closer to earth than traditional satellites - came along and blew every player out the water.
💡Being closer to earth means Starlink can deliver faster, more responsive internet than you'd typically get. But by partnering with OneWeb...Telstra's at least one step ahead of its peers...and one step closer to SpaceX.
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