Hughes Network Systems will deploy up to 4,000 Wi-Fi hotspots powered by Facebook Connectivity’s Express Wi-Fi platform in rural Mexico. Hughes is working in collaboration with Telecomunicaciones de México (TELECOMM), a decentralized body under the Mexico Secretariat of Communications and Transportation.
The first Hughes Express Wi-Fi hotspot under this initiative was installed by TELECOMM in the town of General Sandino, where there was previously no high-speed Internet. Home to approximately 300 residents, the town is a two-hour drive from Tuxtla Gutierrez, the capital of Chiapas State in the southern region of Mexico.
Hughes Express Wi-Fi makes affordable, high-speed Internet access available to people in rural communities at prices as low as 10 pesos (50 cents USD) per hour. The solution leverages the Hughes JUPITER System, the next generation VSAT platform designed and optimized for broadband services, using Ka-band capacity from the JUPITER 2 (EchoStar XIX) High-Throughput Satellite.
“The agreement with TELECOMM to deploy Hughes Express Wi-Fi hotspots at thousands of rural locations reflects the power of the solution to make affordable Internet access available quickly to help connect the unconnected,” said Ramesh Ramaswamy, senior vice president and general manager, International Division at Hughes. “We look forward to working together with TELECOMM to connect more communities in Mexico with this turnkey, satellite broadband service.”
