Jio Platforms Ltd and SES Announce Joint Venture to Deliver High-Performance Satellite-Based Broadband Services Across India
February 13 2022 - 10:09PM
Business Wire
New joint venture will extend network reach and
resiliency by leveraging SES’s satellites in both geostationary and
medium earth orbits, including O3b mPOWER
Jio Platforms Limited (“JPL”), India’s leading digital service
provider, and SES, a leading global satellite-based content
connectivity solutions provider, today announced the formation of a
joint venture – Jio Space Technology Limited – to deliver the next
generation scalable and affordable broadband services in India
leveraging satellite technology. JPL and SES will own 51% and 49%
equity stake in the joint venture respectively. The joint venture
will use multi-orbit space networks that is a combination of
geostationary (GEO) and medium earth orbit (MEO) satellite
constellations capable of delivering multi-gigabit links and
capacity to enterprises, mobile backhaul and retail customers
across the length and breadth of India and neighbouring
regions.
The joint venture will be the vehicle for providing SES’s
satellite data and connectivity services in India, except for
certain international aeronautical and maritime customers who may
be served by SES. It will have availability of up to 100 Gbps
capacity from SES and will leverage Jio’s premiere position and
sales reach in India to unlock this market opportunity. As part of
investment plan, the joint venture will develop extensive gateway
infrastructure in India to provide services within the country.
Jio, as an anchor customer of the joint venture, has entered into a
multi-year capacity purchase agreement, based on certain milestones
along with gateways and equipment purchase with total contract
value of circa US $100 million.
The joint venture will leverage SES-12, SES’s high-throughput
GEO satellite serving India, and O3b mPOWER, SES’s next-generation
MEO constellation, to extend and complement Jio’s terrestrial
network, increasing access to digital services and applications.
Jio will offer managed services and gateway infrastructure
operations services to the joint venture.
As Covid-19 has demonstrated, access to broadband is imperative
for full participation in the new digital economy. This joint
venture will be a catalyst for connecting the unconnected areas
within India and the region to the full range of digital services,
offering access to remote health, government services, and distance
learning opportunities.
Akash Ambani, Director of Jio, said, “While we continue
to expand our fibre-based connectivity and FTTH business and invest
in 5G, this new joint venture with SES will further accelerate the
growth of multigigabit broadband. With additional coverage and
capacity offered by satellite communications services, Jio will be
able to connect the remotest towns and villages, enterprises,
government establishments, and consumers to the new Digital India.
We are excited about this new journey combining our massive reach
and customer base with SES’s innovative leadership and expertise in
the satellite industry.”
Steve Collar, CEO of SES said, “This joint venture with
JPL is a great example of how SES can complement even the most
extensive terrestrial networks to deliver high-quality
connectivity, and positively affect the lives of hundreds of
millions of people. We look forward to this joint venture whereby
we can play a role in promoting digital inclusion in India.”
The joint venture also aligns with the Hon’ble Prime Minister’s
‘Gati Shakti: National Master Plan for Multi-modal Connectivity’
initiative to provide integrated and seamless connectivity by
implementing diverse infrastructure. It will also accelerate the
achievement of the Connect India goals in the 2018 National Digital
Communications Policy and the Digital India programme by expanding
broadband connectivity to Indian citizens across Indian
geography.
About Jio Platforms Limited
Jio Platforms Limited (“Jio”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of
Reliance Industries Limited, has built a world-class all-IP data
strong future proof network with latest 4G LTE technology (through
its wholly owned subsidiary, Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited). It is
the only network conceived and born as a Mobile Video Network from
the ground up and supporting Voice over LTE technology. It is
future ready and can be easily upgraded to support even more data,
as technologies advance on to 5G, 6G and beyond.
Jio has brought transformational changes in the Indian digital
services space to enable the vision of Digital India for 1.3
billion Indians and propel India into global leadership in the
digital economy. It has created an eco-system comprising of
network, devices, applications and content, platforms, service
experience and affordable tariffs for everyone to live the Jio
Digital Life. As part of its customer offers, Jio has
revolutionised the Indian telecom landscape by making voice calls
for Jio customers absolutely free, across India, to any network,
and always.
About SES
SES has a bold vision to deliver amazing experiences everywhere
on earth by distributing the highest quality video content and
providing seamless connectivity around the world. As the leader in
global content connectivity solutions, SES operates the world’s
only multi-orbit constellation of satellites with the unique
combination of global coverage and high performance, including the
commercially-proven, low-latency Medium Earth Orbit O3b system. By
leveraging a vast and intelligent, cloud-enabled network, SES is
able to deliver high-quality connectivity solutions anywhere on
land, at sea or in the air, and is a trusted partner to the world’s
leading telecommunications companies, mobile network operators,
governments, connectivity and cloud service providers,
broadcasters, video platform operators and content owners. SES’s
video network carries over 8,500 channels and has an unparalleled
reach of 361 million households, delivering managed media services
for both linear and non-linear content. The company is listed on
Paris and Luxembourg stock exchanges (Ticker: SESG). Further
information is available at: www.ses.com.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220213005068/en/
For SES: Suzanne Ong External Communications Tel. +352 710 725
500 suzanne.ong@ses.com
For Jio Platforms Limited Jio.CorporateCommunication@ril.com
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