Eutelsat announces the successful coupling of the KONNECT satellite platform and payload, carried out this week at the Thales Alenia Space site in Cannes. This operation marks an important milestone in the construction of the satellite, ahead of its launch scheduled for the end of the year.
With capabilities to serve the broadband Internet market in Western Europe and Africa on a large scale, KONNECT is an important pillar of Eutelsat's strategy to return to growth, giving it the means to strengthen its presence in the high-potential broadband market. More broadly, this satellite program supports the Group's ambition to help bridge the digital divide, with a view to building a more inclusive digital society. Drawing on existing satellite resources, Eutelsat is already pursuing this ambition and preparing for the arrival of this satellite by launching new Internet access offers in these regions, as it recently did in several African countries.
Yohann Leroy, Deputy CEO and Chief Technology Officer of Eutelsat, said: "This coupling operation marks a key milestone in this ongoing program, which will ultimately enable us to provide affordable broadband services to complement terrestrial networks in Western Europe, but also in Africa, where Internet access is now a major development issue."
Read: Interview with Jean-Claude Tshipama, CEO of Eutelsat's Konnect Africa initiative
Source: Press release