Amazon has launched test satellites in Florida

San Francisco, October 11, 2023

Amazon successfully launched the first internet satellites last weekend and put them into orbit. The prototype satellite test is expected to provide crucial data as Amazon aims to deploy 7,774 satellites in low Earth orbit by 2029, challenging SpaceX’s Starlink and others in the broadband wireless internet space.

In March of 2019, Amazon announced its Project Kuiper satellite internet network. This is a satellite internet network with an investment of $10 billion. The company has received approval from US regulators to deploy over 3,200 satellites and is now seeking approval for an additional 4,538.

On Friday, Amazon’s KuiperSat-1 and KuiperSat-2 test satellites were launched aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from a launch pad in Florida. This is the company’s first step before launching thousands more satellites into orbit to provide high-speed, low-latency broadband to subscribers.

Starlink, its main competitor, has already deployed around 4,800 satellites and reported over two million active customers, generating $1.4 billion in revenue last year.

Meanwhile, Telesat (Canada) and One Web – recently acquired by Eutelsat – are other satellite internet companies with plans for a near-Earth constellation

orbit. OneWeb already offers services through various partners.

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