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Facebook Is Officially Building An Internet Satellite

posted by Fnord666 on Monday July 23 2018, @09:58AM   Printer-friendly
from the spacial-mesh dept.

Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:

This May, sleuths at IEEE Spectrum revealed something exciting -- Facebook appeared to be secrely working on an experimental satellite that could beam internet down to Earth using millimeter wave radio signals.

Now, Facebook has confirmed to Wired and CNET that the satellite, dubbed Athena, is indeed a Facebook project -- and that Facebook is a believer in satellite internet technology.

"While we have nothing to share about specific projects at this time, we believe satellite technology will be an important enabler of the next generation of broadband infrastructure, making it possible to bring broadband connectivity to rural regions where internet connectivity is lacking or non-existent," a Facebook spokesperson told CNET and Wired.

But Wired does have more to share about this specific project. Using a Freedom of Information Act request, Wired says it obtained emails from the FCC that reportedly show Facebook plans to launch the Athena satellite in early 2019. In space launch terms, that's coming up pretty dang fast.

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  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by c0lo on Monday July 23 2018, @02:36PM (2 children)

    by c0lo (156) on Monday July 23 2018, @02:36PM (#711242) Journal

    I'm not saying Facebook isn't trying to collect as much information about everyone on the planet as possible, but why would they want to be able to look at your back yard?

    To make sure it is you that sends those packets?

    Watching your rusty grill slowly succumb to the elements doesn't seem like information worth selling.

    On the contrary. Expect more barbeque ads with you FB experience.

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  • (Score: 2) by bob_super on Monday July 23 2018, @07:18PM

    by bob_super (1357) on Monday July 23 2018, @07:18PM (#711399)

    I was gonna say that, but they don't need a sat pic of your backyard for that, since your friend, your SO, your neighbors, and occasionally you ... will post FB/instagram pics of said backyard, optionally with a comment about the crumbling grill.

    FB just needs to work on reaching more people who have little internet. The ones who already do have the app are self-sustaining and don't need much investment.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 24 2018, @10:35AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 24 2018, @10:35AM (#711660)

    Expect more barbeque ads with you FB experience.

    How dare you presume I have a FB experience.