Satellite Base Station Company Lynk announces First Customers

US-based 'cell-tower-in-space" Lynk announced yesterday that it has gone commercial.

A New Take on Satcom

Lynk, like Starlink and OneWeb, uses LEO satellites. However, the company aims to establish direct connection to devices. Interestingly, the other satcom solutions use a terrestrial hub to deliver connectivity from the satellites. Lynk achieves this by a proprietary technology; it makes a device "think" that it is connected to a normal base station.

Lynk's solutions raises some intriguing questions. One, if this was possible at an affordable price, why hasn't anyone else taken it up yet? Two, even if it is possible at a justifiable price point, can it deliver telecom-grade connectivity from space? If this works out well, then, the others have a problem on their hands.

Lynk hasn't been around for long; however, getting commercial customers at this stage is a significant step. What's more, the company has also applied for an FCC operator's license. That will then allow it to deliver LEO connectivity worldwide starting next year. On the side, it has been busy chucking satellites in the sky; it will make 200 satellites next month, if everything goes right.

Lynk Goes Commercial

The announcement said that it has closed deals with telcos in the Bahamas and CAR. Charles Miller, Co-founder and CEO, Lynk, said, "Lynk is proud to announce the first two mobile network operators as a part of our Flagship partnership program".

Miller added, "this speaks to the visionary leadership of Aliv and Telecel Centrafrique, which recognize the powerful benefits of providing universal mobile broadband to their customers. Lynk is solving a problem that nobody else in the world is solving. We call it The 0G Problem. Next time you hear somebody use the phrase ‘5G’, ask yourself ‘How does 5G solve the World’s 0G problem?’ The answer … it doesn’t.”

Stephen Curran, CTO, Aliv, said, "Aliv is excited to be one of Lynk’s first Flagship operators". Curran added, "providing coverage, particularly in the Caribbean given our sometimes extreme weather events, we need to ensure we have emergency communications back-up, when the network experiences issues, and our sites are down".

He added, "Lynk will provide that critical communication service on land and for our maritime users – with the phones they have in their pockets today. We are very excited with the testing we have been executing in the last period and look forward to rolling this out next year to our users."

Telecel Centrafique CEO Malek Atrissi said, "by partnering with Lynk, Telecel aims to bridge the digital divide by extending its services to all the population, no matter where they are".

Atrissi added, "we urge others in our continent to see Lynk as an optimal solution to help support our mutual mission as operators – to bring us together with safe, good quality and continuous communication. We know that it enhances the lives of our citizens to have access to mobile services and give them constant and continuous access".