SES awaits security nod, says new MEO satellites to boost Reliance Jio's enterprise business
SES
said that the company is awaiting security approvals from the Indian government to commercially launch services, and its newly-inducted
O3b mPower
communications satellite systems would facilitate Jio's space broadband offering for enterprises in the country.
'I think the last bit of security regulations are being sorted out. In my opinion, we are ready to go. We are already doing proof-of-concepts (PoC), but we're not allowed to carry commercial traffic. But in my opinion, we are just a few months away, and launch within the year,' Harsh Verma, head of enterprise business development at SES Asia, told
ETSatcom
.
Thursday, SES launched two communication satellites- O3b mPOWER 9 and 10, aboard a Falcon 9 rocket from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, a southeasternmost US state.
'For the 5G backhauling services, which is the core of their (Jio's) network and infrastructure planning, and deployment, they (Jio) are looking at O3b mPower system. Jio is also using our geostationary asset - SES-12.'
The SES executive said that the company has already geared up fully since the last two years with its ground infrastructure, and other necessary operational processes.
SES deployed its gateways together with Jio in Kadapa, a city in the southern part of Andhra Pradesh.
We are basically making sure that it (ground station) complies with the telecom department's (DoT) security regulations.
SES said that unlike billionaire Elon Musk-owned Starlink's low-earth orbit (LEO) satellites that are "more consumer grade," it offers "enterprise and carrier grade services" with predictable latency, service-level agreements (SLA) and throughput.
'We also bring in flexibility in our systems, and make it more sovereign.'
Adel Al-Saleh-headed multinational's stakeholders include BlackRock Advisors, Temasek Holdings and Vertex Legacy Continuation Fund.
'Jio is looking to go into remote areas and really increase their coverage. India could be covering about 97-98%, but even 2% of the population still means a lot to them, and that's where satellite comes in. I am sure there are places they will use Starlink as well for more consumer-related services,' Verma added.
Mukesh Ambani-owned Jio is looking at multiple satellite technologies— LEO, MEO and GEO, and has partnered with Starlink in India. On the contrary, archrival Bharti Airtel through Bharti Global invested in
Eutelsat Oneweb
and also maintains partnership with Starlink, with both offering LEO satellite constellation for broadband internet access in underserved areas.
'We have a very strategic foray into India, creating a joint venture with
Reliance Jio
. We have already started delivering the geostationary capacity on SES-12 while we bring O3b mPower. We are just waiting for final regulatory approval in India where we will start launching
5G services
with Jio in India very soon, hopefully by the end of the year.'
The executive further said that the multinational is serving as many as eight out of 10 top telecom carriers who are making space connectivity as a part of their core strategy.
In February 2022, Jio Platforms, a part of India's oil-to-telecom conglomerate formed a joint venture (JV) with satellite operator SES through Jio Space Technology Limited to deliver broadband services in India.
SES plans to launch three more satellites over the next 12 months to strengthen the network further, has as many as 20 GEO satellites currently hosting 9 direct-to-home (DTH) platforms and more than 2,000 TV channels worldwide.
In 2024, the company earned a revenue of €3.7 billion (about $4 billion).
Recently, SES acquired a global satellite operator Intelsat, creating a combined entity with a fleet of 120 satellites offering multi-band connectivity across two orbits.
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