Google Inc. is pressing forward with a plan to
launch solar-powered drones to broadcast Internet to the 4 billion
people without access. The plan comes after Google announced a plan to
offer wireless phone and data service in the U.S. later this year.
Google is launching the drones through Titan Aerospace, a
manufacturer it acquired last April, sometime later this year, according
to Sundar Pichai, senior vice president of product. During the Mobile
World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, Pichai said Google’s Titan drones
are at the
same point in development as its atmospheric balloon program,
Project Loon, was two years ago, The Guardian reported.
Titan Aerospace is developing the lightweight,
solar-powered drones to remain in the Earth’s stratosphere for extended
periods of time, broadcasting Internet signals to targeted areas much
like satellite television services do from geostationary satellites. The
Titan drones are meant to work alongside Project Loon but are easier to
keep in a specific location.
The high-altitude drones could also be used to provide
service to areas struck by disasters that often disrupt cell and
landline Internet service, Pichai said. He added the drones would also
work in tandem with local service providers to maintain a consistent
level of service.
Google announced a number of advancements in its programs
to provide Internet service around the globe. In the U.S., Pichai
announced Google’s plan to offer wireless service by licensing wireless
networks from larger carriers as a mobile virtual network operator, or
MVNO, to offer a service much like Virgin Mobile and MetroPCS.
Google is reportedly planning on supplementing its wireless phone service with Wi-Fi hotspots in areas where it offers Google Fiber. In what is shaping up to be a space race in Silicon Valley, Internet giant Facebook also has plans to offer Internet service through drones, as does SpaceX, according to CEO Elon Musk.
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