Navdeep Bains, the Canadian minister of innovation, said that high-speed internet access is not a luxury, and that Canadians should have access to it regardless of where they live. “Today’s announcements will provide us with a glimpse of what future connectivity of rural and remote communities will look like. It will also ensure that innovative Canadian companies, like Telesat and its partners, remain world leaders, creating highly skilled jobs in Canada,” said Bains in a statement.

Telesat has made steady progress in its goal of establishing a low-earth-orbit (LEO) constellation of 292 satellites, aiming to provide satellite internet service by the end of 2022. Back in January, Telesat reached a deal with Jeff Bezos’ rocket firm, Blue Origin, to deploy the satellites, and Alpabet’s Loon to provide the networking system. At present, companies like Airbus, Thales and Leonardo are vying for a contract to build Telesat’s constellation, estimated to be worth $3 billion.

Telesat’s LEO network will be 35 times closer to the Earth’s orbit than traditional satellites, resulting in a shorter trip for internet signals. Such a system is expected to easily integrate with existing terrestrial networks, and deliver fiber-quality internet anywhere on Earth. Telesat expects to provide minimum internet speeds of 50/10 Mbps per household.

Rural Canada has long been considered a “blackout zone,” where slow internet speeds and dead cell zones are endemic.This is in stark contrast to Canada’s cities, where 96 percent of residents have access to speeds of at least 100 Mbps. Last November, a report by Canada’s Office of the Auditor General revealed that a $500 million effort by the government to wire 300 rural communities is in disarray. Hopefully this venture by Telesat — expected to earn $1.2 billion in revenue over the next 10 years — will also help bridge the digital divide.