Ibadan, 28 February 2023. – The European Space Agency (ESA) and Deutsche Telekom have partnered to enable seamless connectivity from terrestrial networks, from the sky, or from above. At Mobile World Congress 2023 in Barcelona, they signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to work together on the hybrid networks of the future.
The partnership aims to develop more resilient and secure connectivity solutions for future communication needs. This is especially critical in the event of possible disruption to parts of the network technology on the ground. In such a case, a non-terrestrial network from satellites or the stratosphere could seamlessly maintain contact with the smartphones of the affected people. Or from rescue teams on the ground, taking over from the conventional ground infrastructure affected by a disaster.
Regarding this partnership, Claudia Nemat, a Member of the Deutsche Telekom Board of Management responsible for Technology and Innovation, said, “we have a clear ambition: to bring connectivity to everyone at any time and any place. Connection alternatives, such as satellites, play a crucial role in complementing our terrestrial network to ensure service continuity.” Nemat also added, “the collaboration with ESA is an important step in laying the technological foundations for a strengthened network resilience based on the combination of terrestrial and satellite communications. This will improve the accessibility of our network for anyone who needs to stay connected.”
In addition, Javier Benedicto, acting ESA Director of Telecommunications and Integrated Applications, noted the Agency’s delight about the partnership with Deutsche Telekom.
