Amazon Eyes Satellite Internet Service By 2024, Reiterates Over $10B Spend

Loading...
Loading...
  • Amazon.Com, Inc AMZN is preparing to launch its first two prototype satellites by early 2023 and provide internet-from-space service to the earliest Project Kuiper customers by 2024 end.
  • Amazon's FCC license requires it to deploy and operate at least half of our satellite constellation by July 2026.
  • On Tuesday, Dave Limp, Amazon's senior vice president of devices and services, revealed the timeline at a satellite industry trade show in Washington, DC. 
  • He also showcased various prototype user terminals. The prototypes included three different-sized antennas, including a small seven-inch-square model only slightly bigger than an Amazon Kindle, Bloomberg reports.
  • Amazon's most miniature model offers speeds of up to 100 megabits per second. A larger 11-inch-square antenna is capable of 400 megabits per second, and a 19-inch by 30-inch model can handle 1 gigabit per second. 
  • Amazon expects to manufacture the 11-inch-square version for less than $400 apiece.
  • Limp reiterated that Amazon planned to invest over $10 billion in the Kuiper venture.
  • Project Kuiper is Amazon's planned constellation of 3,236 low-Earth satellites to blanket the globe, similar to Elon Musk helmed SpaceX's Starlink broadband mega constellation, which has already launched roughly 4,000 satellites into low-Earth orbit.
  • Amazon has shipped the first two test Kuiper satellites to Cape Canaveral, Florida, for a possible launch in May as secondary payloads on the debut flight of United Launch Alliance's new Vulcan rocket. ULA is currently targeting a May 4 launch.
  • Price Action: AMZN shares traded higher by 1.83% at $94.12 on the last check Tuesday.
Loading...
Loading...
Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs
Posted In: NewsTechMediaBriefs
Benzinga simplifies the market for smarter investing

Trade confidently with insights and alerts from analyst ratings, free reports and breaking news that affects the stocks you care about.

Join Now: Free!

Loading...