Facebook announces that will provide low-cost Internet connection to communities in Mexico and Brazil without a current service. Hughes Networks Systems will provide the technological giant with the necessary infrastructure.
Hughes’ technology is based on the satellite Internet offered through VSAT, a small opening terminal. The Wi-Fi team works with the Facebook Express platform.
Hughes Network Systems expressed that the technology uses a solution that combines a VSAT satellite by Hughes and the Wi-Fi equipment with the Wi-Fi Express platform of Facebook.
The goal of the Facebook project is to provide the Internet to everyone, but its priority is to extend the service to communities that currently lack connectivity.
So far, Hughes customers have created 32,000 access points to Wi-Fi hotspots with satellite Internet in countries such as Russia, Brazil, Indonesia and also Mexico.
According to data from the Internet Association.Mx, in Mexico a third of the population does not have an Internet connection. Of the users without connection, 50% affirmed not to have due to the wrong service or few available options in the zone in which they live, while a 35% confirmed that they do not connect because of the high costs.
In Brazil, the Internet connection reaches 75% of the population, but in connection speed, it is surpassed by Mexico. In recent years, Internet penetration in Mexico has increased to four percentage points, below what was expected.