KDDI Taps SpaceX's Starlink to enable cellular backhaul

KDDI Corporation has selected Starlink to deliver high-speed, low-latency broadband internet to KDDI's 1,200 remote mobile towers as its network backhaul provider. As soon as 2022, KDDI will be able to offer an urban mobile connectivity experience to its rural mobile customers.

Developed by SpaceX, Starlink provides high-speed, low-latency satellite broadband internet around the globe. Starlink satellites are positioned in low-Earth orbit at an altitude of 550 km, over 65 times closer than traditional satellite operators, so it can achieve significantly lower latency and higher transmission speeds for its end users. Using Starlink to backhaul service from these remote stations complements KDDI's urban towers that utilize fiber for backhaul.

Starlink is currently delivering initial beta service to over 100,000 users and is continuing expansion to near global coverage of the populated world.

An experimental license has been issued by the MIC (Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications) to operate the ground station for Starlink service installed at KDDI's Yamaguchi Satellite Communication Center. Both companies have been conducting a series of technical demonstrations to evaluate its quality and performance.

For more than 50 years since KDDI succeeded in receiving the world's first trans-Pacific television relay in 1963, it has been contributing to the development of satellite communications as a pioneer, including those for disaster recovery, for data links to vessels and aircrafts, and for international video transmission.