Hughes in Partnership with Facebook Launches HughesNet Wi-Fi Hotspots in Brazil and Mexico
GERMANTOWN, Md., May 2, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Hughes Network Systems, LLC (HUGHES), the global leader in broadband satellite networks and services, today announced a partnership with Facebook to launch HughesNet® Wi-Fi Hotspots throughout Brazil and Mexico, supported by the Facebook Express Wi-Fi platform. HughesNet Wi-Fi Hotspots empower local merchants of villages and towns to offer affordable Internet access to their customers on a prepaid basis, employing a solution that combines a Hughes satellite VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) and Wi-Fi equipment with Facebook’s Express Wi-Fi platform.
“Express Wi-Fi supports the Facebook Connectivity mission to bring more people online to a faster Internet,” said Paul Monte, technical program manager, Express Wi-Fi, Facebook. “We’re excited to partner with Hughes given the great potential to connect rural communities across Latin America by leveraging both Hughes satellite technology to reach underserved areas and the Express Wi-Fi platform to offer an end-to-end software solution for the network operators, local retailers and Internet users.”
“Our combined turnkey solution enables local merchants to manage their own hotspots and sell affordable Internet service to people everywhere,” said Vinay Patel, senior director, International Division at Hughes. “This exciting partnership with Facebook opens up a large market opportunity to expand HughesNet high-speed satellite Internet service while supporting local communities throughout Brazil and Mexico.”
Facebook’s Express Wi-Fi is a platform that helps service providers and mobile network operators build, operate, grow and monetize their Wi-Fi business in a sustainable and scalable way. Facebook partners with service providers and operators who expand the provision of fast, affordable and reliable access to the Internet over Wi-Fi using Express Wi-Fi.
Hughes customers have deployed over 32,000 of its satellite-enabled Community Wi-Fi Hotspots in Russia, Mexico, Brazil and Indonesia, bringing the benefits of Internet access to more than 25 million people around the world. Any user can access the Internet with a Wi-Fi capable handheld or laptop, either on a prepaid or government-subsidized (USO) basis, depending on the service model – and the solution can be readily deployed virtually anywhere within the satellite footprint, including areas unserved or underserved by wireline or wireless infrastructure.
For more information, please visit https://www.hughes.com/what-we-do/by-solution/satellite-enabled-community-wifi-solutions
Hughes at SATELLITE 2019: Connecting People, Enterprises and Things
Hughes will exhibit at SATELLITE 2019 May 6-9 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., showcasing how consumers, businesses, governments and communities around the world benefit from the connected experiences enabled by Hughes technologies and services, today…and tomorrow. See Hughes executives at SATELLITE 2019 for unique perspective on connecting people, enterprises and things – including GEO HTS and LEO systems; community Wi-Fi and cellular backhaul solutions; M2M, AI and IoT networks; aero and maritime connectivity; MilSatCom and more. For further information, please visit www.hughes.com/sat19
About Hughes Network Systems
Hughes Network Systems, LLC (HUGHES) is the global leader in broadband satellite technology and services for home and office. Its flagship high-speed satellite Internet service is HughesNet®, the world’s largest satellite network with over 1.3 million residential and business customers across the Americas. For large enterprises and governments, the company’s HughesON™ managed network services provide complete connectivity solutions employing an optimized mix of satellite and terrestrial technologies. The JUPITER™ System is the world’s most widely deployed High-Throughput Satellite (HTS) platform, operating on more than 20 satellites by leading service providers, delivering a wide range of broadband enterprise, mobility and cellular backhaul applications. To date, Hughes has shipped more than 7 million terminals of all types to customers in over 100 countries, representing approximately 50 percent market share, and its technology is powering broadband services to aircraft around the world.
Headquartered outside Washington, D.C., in Germantown, Maryland, USA, Hughes operates sales and support offices worldwide, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ: SATS), a premier global provider of satellite operations. For additional information about Hughes, please visit www.hughes.com and follow @HughesConnects on Twitter.
About EchoStar
EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ: SATS) is a premier global provider of satellite communication solutions. Headquartered in Englewood, Colo., and conducting business around the globe, EchoStar is a pioneer in secure communications technologies through its Hughes Network Systems and EchoStar Satellite Services business segments. For more information, visit www.echostar.com. Follow @EchoStar on Twitter.
©2019 Hughes Network Systems, LLC, an EchoStar company. Hughes and HughesNet are registered trademarks and JUPITER is a trademark of Hughes Network Systems, LLC.
