UbiquitiLink has raised $5.2 million from Revolution's "Rise of the Rest" Seed Fund and Blazar Ventures, Axios has learned, bringing the commercial space startup's total funding to $12 million. Why it matters: Falls Church, Va.-based UbiquitiLink is testing the first "cell towers in space" to provide satellite-powered internet service — directly to consumers' cellphones — in rural and unserved areas. According to FCC data, 31% of rural residents don't have fixed broadband service. The big picture: Big space players such as SpaceX, Viasat and OneWeb are launching low-Earth orbit satellites to beam broadband services around the world. Those services require costly terminals or antennas to be installed on the ground to receive the signal. How it works: The initial service will provide a back-up safety net for services like 911 in remote locations and emergency broadcasts. Compared to what you'd find in urban areas, the initial connections are slower — download speeds of around 180 kilobits per second using LTE, which is in line with 2G speeds. The next cosmic cell tower will be launched next week on a SpaceX rocket to test connectivity across 22 mobile operators around the world in addition to other trial partners. "It's not perfect, but it's good enough for most," said Miller. "90% of the world has zero Gs. This is about the rest of us — the ones who've been left behind." As the co-founder of AOL, Revolution CEO Steve Case has a special interest in the company's mission. Yes, but: While the cost of launching satellites in space has come down, it's still an expensive undertaking that will require a lot more money to scale into a commercial service. Miller predicts a minimum viable commercial product would need about $30 million in investment to put half a dozen satellites into orbit.
Virginia-based UbiquitiLink has increased its total funding to $12m after raising $5.2m from Revolution's "Rise of the Rest" Seed Fund and Blazar Ventures. UbiquitiLink aims to offer a satellite-powered, roughly 2G internet service, with signals sent directly to customers' phones. The firm is scheduled to launch a cell tower on a SpaceX rocket in the coming days, to test connectivity across 22 mobile operators.