Mark Zuckerberg: "I'm excited to announce our first project to deliver internet
from space. As part of our Internet.org efforts to connect
the world, we're partnering with Eutelsat to launch a satellite
into orbit that will connect millions of people.
Over the last year Facebook has been exploring ways to use
aircraft and satellites to beam internet access down into
communities from the sky. To connect people living in
remote regions, traditional connectivity infrastructure is
often difficult and inefficient, so we need to invent new
technologies.
As part of our collaboration with Eutelsat, a new satellite
called AMOS-6 is going to provide internet coverage to large
parts of Sub-Saharan Africa. The AMOS-6 satellite is under
construction now and will launch in 2016 into a
geostationary orbit that will cover large parts of West, East
and Southern Africa. We’re going to work with local partners
across these regions to help communities begin accessing
internet services provided through satellite.
This is just one of the innovations we’re working on to
achieve our mission with Internet.org. Connectivity changes
lives and communities. We’re going to keep working to
connect the entire world -- even if that means looking
beyond our planet.
