SpaceX is considering a terrestrial cellular network powered by Starlink satellite backhaul, but scarce spectrum, enormous capacity demands and entrenched rivals could make its boldest telecommunications gambit yet far harder to execute profitably at scale. more
Wi-Fi 7 is spreading rapidly across America, promising faster speeds, greater capacity and fewer connectivity headaches. With big internet providers driving adoption, the technology is reshaping home broadband even as Wi-Fi 8 approaches.
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China's Qianfan satellite constellation could bring high-speed internet to Cuba, where Starlink remains banned, deepening Beijing's digital influence while giving Havana a connectivity upgrade designed to preserve the government's control over online access. more
Direct-to-device satellite cellular promises to extend coverage beyond terrestrial networks, but physics, capacity constraints, and indoor limitations suggest it will complement existing mobile service rather than emerge as a true competitor. more
Amazon has outlined plans for a 5,105-satellite constellation that will connect smartphones directly from space, expanding emergency and mobile services while intensifying competition in the fast-growing satellite-to-device communications market. more
SpaceX wants to expand Starlink to 100,000 satellites and eventually carry most of the world's internet traffic. Ambition is not the problem. Market competition, geopolitics and the resilience of fiber networks make that goal implausible. more
As 6G development accelerates, its promises of faster speeds, lower latency, and immersive applications raise questions about whether carriers can justify another costly network upgrade when 5G's commercial promises remain largely unfulfilled across the industry. more
The Internet Governance Forum has secured its permanent place in the UN system. Its next challenge is to strengthen its relevance, deepen multistakeholder collaboration, and deliver greater impact across an increasingly complex and fragmented digital governance landscape. more
Claims that AI is reshaping internet traffic are gaining attention, but evidence remains mixed as residential ISPs report little change while business networks see steadier demand and faster upstream growth today warrants closer industry scrutiny. more
IP geolocation has evolved from routing metadata into essential Internet infrastructure, enabling compliant content delivery, cybersecurity, and digital governance while raising urgent questions about transparency, interoperability, and fragmentation risks worldwide for policymakers and providers alike. more
SpaceX's towering valuation rests less on Starlink's current connectivity economics than on ambitious platform expectations, raising doubts that satellite broadband and mobile services alone can justify trillion-dollar valuations indefinitely despite intensifying competition for investors.
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Spain will require telecom operators to keep mobile networks running for up to four hours during power outages, introducing phased resilience standards, stronger emergency communications safeguards and stricter backup requirements for critical digital infrastructure. more
The European Union plans to reserve most future satellite spectrum for regional firms while still allowing Starlink and Amazon to compete, reflecting Brussels' attempt to balance technological sovereignty with market openness in a strategically sensitive communications sector. more
As power grids depend on microsecond precision, states must treat time synchronization as sovereign infrastructure, hardening satellite, fiber and orbital defenses against hybrid attacks that could trigger catastrophic blackouts through resilient sovereign time defense frameworks. more
Iran is seeking to monetize and potentially weaponize subsea internet cables beneath the Strait of Hormuz, exposing how modern geopolitical conflicts increasingly threaten the digital infrastructure underpinning global finance, communications and trade. more