Satellite Options for the Internet
Even as global communication leaps forward at breathtaking speed, there are still pockets of residences that find themselves out of reach of high speed Internet via DSL or cable service, both of which require subscribers to be hard-wired into networks that are generally centered in populated areas. For rural subscribers, satellite Internet is an affordable option that normally works noticeably faster than dial-up access. There are two major providers of this type of service: WildBlue and HughesNet.
Other People Are Reading
-
Access
-
Dial-up, DSL and cable Internet access all arrive in your house via some sort of wire (either telephone or cable television) that is connected to a larger network. Once you move outside of this wired arrangement, as in rural areas, your Internet options through a wire dwindle to dial-up only. In this day of streaming video and high bandwidth websites, this option is often a glacially slow and frustrating experience, moving at no more than 56 kbps under the best of conditions. The alternative is satellite Internet, which is not a perfect solution but is much faster than dial-up and leaves your phone free for calls.
WildBlue
-
WildBlue is a privately held corporation that entered commercial service in 2005 with a business plan to target dial-up subscribers who could not access other means of high speed Internet and would be willing to pay for a monthly connection that arrived by means of data streamed through the air from satellites in earth orbit. As long as there are areas that cannot be serviced by wired forms of high speed Internet access, the satellite delivery business model should remain viable, although the coming years will certainly see deeper penetration into rural areas by DSL and cable service.
-
HughesNet
-
Acquired by Echostar in early 2011, HughesNet is the other major player in the satellite Internet provider business, offering a technology and service that is, despite the war of advertisements, basically the same as WildBlue. The company originally began life in 1971 as Hughes Electronics, but has grown and branched off into different subsidiaries since then. Hughes pioneered the idea of satellite Internet and remains a provider for businesses and residences around the world.
Installation
-
Regardless of which satellite Internet provider you decide to go with, the setup is essentially identical. A technician arrives to mount a dish either on a pole in your yard or on the side or roof of your house. The dish looks almost exactly like a satellite television dish. The connection speed you desire determines the monthly price you pay, which ranges from $40 to $90. As with satellite television signals, there are intermittent service interruptions due to heavy snow, rain or even heavy solar activity. This is not a fault of the provider but merely a limitation of the technology.
-
References
- Photo Credit John Foxx/Stockbyte/Getty Images
