According to industry sources, South Korea is expected to launch a low Earth orbit satellite internet service powered by Eutelsat OneWeb next month, while SpaceX under Elon Musk is also preparing to launch its Starlink service in the country.
KT SAT, the satellite services subsidiary of KT Corp, revealed that Eutelsat OneWeb, a subsidiary of French company Eutelsat, has completed certification for its satellite internet service communication equipment and has begun establishing network connections with local access points.
A KT SAT representative stated: "OneWeb is currently installing equipment and is expected to launch services in September."
OneWeb plans to collaborate with Hanwha Systems and KT SAT to provide Low Earth Orbit (LEO) network services.
According to sources, SpaceX, which operates the Starlink service, has also received approval from South Korea's National Radio Research Agency for a key LEO service equipment. This agency oversees the mandatory certification system for broadcasting and communication equipment.
The American company is awaiting approval for other equipment.
A representative from SK Telecom, Starlink's authorized distributor in South Korea, stated: "Once this process is completed, Starlink Korea is expected to officially launch services after a brief preparation period."