OneWeb Launches 34 New Internet Satellites into Space

Early this morning, London-based OneWeb launched 34 broadband satellites into space from Kazakhstan. Last year, it launched six from South America. Can the company keep up that globetrotting for the 19 more launches it has planned through 2021?

OneWeb's goal: to provide internet access anywhere from space. In the fall, CEO Adrián Steckel told me OneWeb’s “first phase is coverage, the next phase is capacity." When the company reaches its goal of 648 satellites in low Earth orbit, it will "be able to deliver broadband at a substantially lower cost than the incumbents."

OneWeb competitors include SpaceX, Amazon, and Telesat. "I don't think there's a race," Steckel said (I'm sensing a theme today). "Everybody's executing on something different," from proprietary systems to go-to-market strategies.

Zoom up: This tech has tradeoffs. Satellites can improve internet access to remote areas, but space is getting crowded, increasing the risk of collisions and cascading debris. Astronomers also worry that more satellites will disrupt their work.

+ While we're here: SpaceX wants to spin out Starlink, its satellite arm.