{"id":17989,"date":"2019-07-18T01:03:07","date_gmt":"2019-07-17T17:03:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/ubiquitilink-wins-5-2m-boost-for-satellite-service-that-works-with-standard-phones\/"},"modified":"2019-07-18T01:03:07","modified_gmt":"2019-07-17T17:03:07","slug":"ubiquitilink-wins-5-2m-boost-for-satellite-service-that-works-with-standard-phones","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/ubiquitilink-wins-5-2m-boost-for-satellite-service-that-works-with-standard-phones\/","title":{"rendered":"UbiquitiLink wins $5.2M boost for satellite service that works with standard phones"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Ubiquitilink
UbiquitiLink\u2019s system would allow users of mobile devices to connect using either ground-based or space-based networks. (UbiquitiLink Illustration)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Virginia-based UbiquitiLink says it has raised another $5.2 million in seed funding for a network that aims to provide satellite connectivity for standard mobile devices.<\/p>\n

The latest investments from Revolution\u2019s Rise of the Rest Seed Fund and Blazar Ventures bring UbiquitiLink\u2019s total funding to $12 million. UbiquitiLink says the added cash will accelerate development of the company\u2019s commercial service with a series of five orbital test flights.<\/p>\n

In an interview, UbiquitiLink co-founder and CEO Charles Miller said he expects the initial \u201ckiller app\u201d will be text messaging.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur vision is that never again should somebody die because they have a phone in their pocket but they\u2019re disconnected,\u201d he told GeekWire. \u201cYou should always be connected if you want to be. That day will be here soon.\u201d<\/p>\n

UbiquitiLink\u2019s satellite-based system would mesh with terrestrial mobile networks to provide LTE (4G) and GSM (2G) connectivity when a mobile device is outside the coverage area for a ground-based telecommunications network. The cost of the satellite service would be folded into the charges from mobile service providers.<\/p>\n

Miller said more than 20 mobile operators have already signed testing agreements. Cellular One in Arizona, Telefonica\u2019s MoviStar service in Argentina and Vodafone Hutchison in Australia are among the publicly disclosed partners, he said.<\/p>\n

Still more mobile operators are waiting in the wings, Miller said: \u201cThey generally say this is the Holy Grail, and they want proof.\u201d<\/p>\n

UbiquitiLink\u2019s first \u201ccell tower in space\u201d was sent to the International Space Station last December, installed onto a Northrop Grumman Cygnus cargo ship and successfully tested in February after the Cygnus left the station for its free-flying phase.<\/p>\n

\"Cygnus
Northrop Grumman\u2019s robotic Cygnus cargo ship pulls away from the International Space Station in February with UbiquitiLink\u2019s test payload installed in its nose. (NASA Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

An upgraded version of the payload is due for launch later this month, with testing scheduled to begin next month. If all the tests go well (and if the company attracts additional funding), UbiquitiLink could start launching operational satellites and go commercial by the end of 2020 or in early 2021, Miller said.<\/p>\n

Steve Case, who co-founded AOL and is chairman and CEO of Revolution, said \u201cUbiquitiLink\u2019s mission of providing everyone, everywhere with mobile connectivity is well-aligned with the focus of Revolution\u2019s Rise of the Rest Seed Fund.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRevolution is excited to invest in technology that is helping to provide global connectivity and is designed to have a significant economic and social impact in rural and remote areas,\u201d Case said in a news release issued today.<\/p>\n

Miller said UbiquitiLink would provide a no-fuss, low-cost option for connectivity off the beaten track.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are building this solution for the 88 million Americans who live in rural areas and lose coverage at the edge of town,\u201d he said in today\u2019s news release. \u201cWe are also building this solution for the 2.5 billion people in the world who don\u2019t have a mobile phone, many because they are not connected where they live and work.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bigger companies \u2014 including SpaceX, OneWeb and Amazon \u2014 are aiming to provide connectivity at higher transmission speeds, but Miller says the costs for those services will be higher as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey all require you to buy a ground terminal,\u201d Miller told GeekWire. \u201cIn our system, your phone in your pocket is the ground terminal. You don\u2019t need another piece of hardware.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

UbiquitiLink\u2019s system would allow users of mobile devices to connect using either ground-based or space-based networks. (UbiquitiLink Illustration) Virginia-based UbiquitiLink says it has raised another $5.2 million in seed funding for a network that aims to provide satellite connectivity for standard mobile devices. The latest investments from Revolution\u2019s Rise of the Rest Seed Fund and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[20,442,368,4976],"class_list":["post-17989","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-satellite","tag-satellites","tag-telecommunications","tag-ubiquitilink"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17989"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17989"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17989\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17989"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17989"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17989"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}