LEO Satellite Connectivity

Traditional geostationary satellites operate much farther from Earth, resulting in higher latency.

LEO satellites operate closer to Earth, reducing latency and improving the responsiveness of applications such as voice, video conferencing, cloud platforms and remote access.

Fibre remains the preferred option for speed, latency and consistency where it is available.

LEO provides a strong business-grade alternative where fibre is not feasible. It can also provide an independent connectivity path alongside fibre where greater resilience is required.

Yes. LEO can be particularly valuable as a backup because the satellite path is independent of many terrestrial fibre routes and network failure points.

When integrated with SD-WAN, FirstNet can configure intelligent failover and traffic routing between LEO, fibre, LTE/5G and other available connections.

LEO can generally be deployed faster than a new fibre build, making it well suited to remote, temporary and newly established sites.

Actual deployment times depend on the site requirements, equipment availability and installation conditions.

Like all satellite technologies, LEO connectivity can be affected by severe weather conditions.

Where business continuity is critical, FirstNet can incorporate LEO into a multi-link connectivity design, using additional connectivity paths and intelligent failover to improve overall network resilience.

Yes. This is where FirstNet adds value beyond the satellite connection itself.

We can integrate LEO with fibre, LTE/5G, SD-WAN, firewalls and other connectivity services to create a managed, resilient network environment aligned to your business requirements.

Yes. With typical latency of around 50–80 ms, OneWeb supports VoIP, video conferencing and cloud applications at business grade, and pairs with FirstNet's cloud PBX.

We confirm site readiness, book an install slot, then install the antenna, activate the service and enable monitoring. Finally, we confirm your support contacts, ticket channels and escalation path.

Dense tree canopy or structures in the antenna's field of view can affect performance, so we validate obstructions during site readiness before committing to an installation.

No. Where viable fibre exists, it remains the better primary. LEO is the right answer where fibre is absent, slow or unreliable, or where you need a genuinely independent backup path.

Yes. FirstNet's LEO satellite service runs on Eutelsat OneWeb and is delivered in South Africa through ICASA-licensed partner arrangements, so it is fully compliant for South African sites. FirstNet itself is ICASA-licensed for ECS and ECNS, ISO 27001 certified and a B-BBEE Level 1 contributor, and provides managed installation, monitoring and support as the single accountable provider.

It depends on the site. LEO needs no tower build and no line-of-sight relay, so it activates faster in remote regions, difficult terrain, long-distance or temporary deployments. Where a stable line of sight is available, an engineered microwave link can outperform LEO for enterprise use. FirstNet assesses both during feasibility and recommends the option that fits your site and resilience goals.

LEO is independent of mobile towers, more predictable where cellular coverage is rural or unstable, and better suited to mission-critical uptime and consistent service across an estate of sites. LTE/5G can be lower cost for light use or urban failover where coverage is strong. Many critical sites use both alongside fibre, with SD-WAN steering traffic between them.