State-run Chunghwa Telecom and the Luxembourg-based satellite constellation operator SES group on Thursday last week signed a memorandum of understanding to build an O3b mPower gateway in Taiwan.
Chunghwa Telecom in a statement said the agreement represents a leap for the telecommunications capabilities and service quality of Taiwan’s medium Earth orbit satellites.
The satellite communications hub would be the second next-generation hub ever installed in northern Asia, it added.
Photo courtesy of Chunghwa Telecom
Establishing a gateway would significantly enhance the speed, stability and resilience of the nation’s Internet infrastructure, and ensure that the nation controls the flow of critical data, the company said.
Chia Chung-yung (賈仲雍), general manager of Chunghwa Telecom’s network technology group, said SES would share its technological expertise in network operations, satellite integration, cloud linkages, edge computing, the Internet of Things and machine vision.
The two parties are to assess the establishment of a joint satellite innovation laboratory to help Taiwanese enterprises obtain technological certificates and product introduction to facilitate the nation’s integration into the SES global supply chain, he said.
This step is key to Taiwan’s plan to leverage its semiconductor and high-tech manufacturing to carve out a strategically advantageous position in the global satellite and aerospace ecosystem, Chia said.
Such an achievement would allow Taiwan to retain its competitive edge in mutually beneficial collaboration with international partners, he added.
Inking the agreement is part of Chunghwa Telecom’s multipronged strategy to build a diversified next-gen telecommunications infrastructure via securing undersea cables, gateways, communications satellite constellations and microwave-based technology, Chia said.
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