Kuiper and Telesat have yet to launch test satellites.
Project Kuiper’s first public step took the form of three sets of filings made with the International Telecommunication Union by the Federal Communications Commission on behalf of Washington, D.C.-based Kuiper Systems LLC. Project Kuiper is Amazon’s plan to launch 3,236 satellites to build a network to provide global high-speed internet. The filings for satellites in low Earth orbit — including 784 satellites at an altitude of 367 miles (590 kilometers); 1,296 satellites at a height of 379 miles (610 kilometers); and 1,156 satellites in 391-mile (630-kilometer) orbits.
Telesat is launching a state-of-the-art satellite constellation in Ka-band of highly advanced satellites in low-earth-orbit (~1,000 km from earth; ~35 times closer than traditional satellites) that will seamlessly integrate with terrestrial networks. The global network will deliver fiber quality throughput (Gbps links; low latency) anywhere on earth. This is a highly flexible system that dynamically allocates capacity where there’s demand, thus maximizing system efficiency.
This is a future-proof solution to backhaul cellular traffic, and to provide high-speed broadband access to planes, ships and remote enterprise and government users. Capacity will be available as layer-2 connectivity for service providers to connect their end users.
As a highly advanced and efficient system with unparalleled economies of scale (multiple Tbps of usable capacity with global coverage), Telesat LEO will deliver to target markets a lower cost solution compared to any other satellite system, thus delivering economical fiber quality connectivity anywhere.
