OneWeb has launched an additional 36 satellites, a milestone that will enable the company to start offering internet service this year.
OneWeb is one of the main competitors to Elon Musk’s Starlink. Whereas Starlink has been offering service since 2020, OneWeb has still been launching its satellites and building out its constellation.
The latest launch, however, brings the company across the tipping point where it will be able to start offering service in the northern hemisphere, according to Reuters. The company now has some 200 satellites in orbit and will soon be able to provide coverage to Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Iceland, Northern Europe, the United Kingdom, conventional US and the Arctic Seas.
While OneWeb lags far behind Starlink, which Musk is projecting to hit 500,000 users within 12 months, having a second low-Earth orbit satellite internet provider is a big win for consumers.