Facebook plans satellite in 2016, Zuckerberg saysOctober 7, 2015 - 11:02 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Facebook plans to launch an Internet beaming satellite into space next year that will bring online access to people in Sub-Saharan Africa, ABC News reports. "Over the last year Facebook has been exploring ways to use aircraft and satellites to beam internet access down into communities from the sky. To connect people living in remote regions, traditional connectivity infrastructure is often difficult and inefficient, so we need to invent new technologies," CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote on his Facebook page. Facebook and Eutelsat, a satellite operator, announced their collaboration on a new satellite called the Amos-6, which will launch into a geostationary orbit next year, beaming Internet into communities that do not otherwise have access. Under a multi-year agreement with satellite maker Spacecom, both companies will share the broadband payload on the Amos-6 to help accelerate connectivity in parts of Africa. Eutelsat said in a statement that the Internet will be optimized for users getting online -- perhaps for the first time ever -- through "affordable, off-the-shelf customer equipment." While Zuckerberg has long said it is his mission to help connect the world, this latest announcement comes following a United Nations report last month which found 57 percent of the world's population is offline and unable to take advantage of the social and economic development opportunities the Internet provides. "This is just one of the innovations we’re working on to achieve our mission with Internet.org," Zuckerberg wrote. "Connectivity changes lives and communities. We’re going to keep working to connect the entire world -- even if that means looking beyond our planet." Photo: AP Top stories Yerevan will host the 2024 edition of the World Congress On Information Technology (WCIT). Rustam Badasyan said due to the lack of such regulation, the state budget is deprived of VAT revenues. Krisp’s smart noise suppression tech silences ambient sounds and isolates your voice for calls. Gurgen Khachatryan claimed that the "illegalities have been taking place in 2020." Partner news Most popular in the section | Scholz hopes Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty will be signed this year German Chancellor Olaf Scholz hopes that a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan will be signed this year. Armenia, Russia discuss life extension of Metsamor nuclear plant Issues regarding the extension of life of the 2nd power unit of the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant were discussed in Yerevan. Armenians stage more campaigns against territorial concessions to Azerbaijan Protesters blocked more roads across Armenia on Friday, April 26 in continuing attempts to scuttle territorial concessions to Azerbaijan. Czech-Armenian military cooperation discussed in Yerevan A delegation led by the Director General for the Industrial Cooperation Division of the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic visited Armenia. |