UAE-based satellite operator Yahsat and Hughes Network Systems have announced the completion of a joint venture arrangement to provide greater access to commercial Ka-band satellite broadband services across Africa, the Middle East and Southwest Asia. The joint venture was officially announced in September. The two companies will continue to provide unserved and underserved communities with reliable, high-speed internet services via Yahsat’s Al Yah 2 and Al Yah 3 Ka-band satellites, while utilizing the capabilities of the Hughes’ innovative systems, designed and optimized for large scale high-throughput satellites.
The newly formed joint venture company will go to market as YahClick (powered by Hughes) and will be operational with immediate effect. The company’s board of directors will include three members from Yahsat and two members from Hughes. Masood Sharif Mahmood, CEO of Yahsat, will serve as the chairman of the board and Pradman Kaul, President and CEO of Hughes, will serve as a board director.
The joint venture will provide “direct-to-premise services” to homes and small to medium-sized enterprises, and to community centres and schools that are served under local government programs across the focus regions.
The agreement also offers “community hotspot” solutions to make satellite-enabled broadband more accessible to many more users across Yahsat’s global footprint, which today covers more than 1 billion people. Further, the agreement enhances the trend within the Mobile Network Operator community to benefit from the efficiencies provided by Ka-band-based backhaul and carrier solutions.
