With 2023 almost behind us, it has been an exciting journey to witness the increasing dependency on space and cloud to bring network resiliency everywhere and accelerate 5G services to power digital transformation initiatives across satellite connected industries.

One good example of this is our growing relationship with Microsoft which is a testament of how we are building a digital future together by delivering joint solutions, unlocking the potential of satellite communications (SATCOM), cloud, and Private 5G (P5G).

“Today we are proud to announce that SES is now available through the Microsoft Azure Marketplace, with our SES O3b mPOWER Enterprise Pro Connectivity service as a transactable offering.”

What does this move to the Azure Marketplace mean?

Simply put, Microsoft Azure customers will now have a simple and intuitive way to procure the satellite connectivity they need to support their cloud services. Azure customers with Microsoft Azure Consumption Commitment (MACC) agreements can now decrement their MACC when they consume connectivity services.

We are one of the first satellite operators to enable satellite connectivity procurement through a marketplace channel.  Availability through Azure Marketplace is yet another facet of our multi-year agreement with Microsoft. Other aspects of our integration include:

• ExpressRoute-over-satellite launch partner
• Azure Orbital connectivity partner
• Aligning our infrastructure with Microsoft’s in strategic areas. This includes providing satellite links that underpin Microsoft’s Express Route dedicated cloud connectivity service, as well as having five O3b mPOWER satellite ground stations co-located and aligned with the Azure Orbital Network.

While we are proud of the progress with Microsoft to demonstrate the power of cloud and satellite one-hop connectivity services for customers around the world, we are even more excited about what’s coming as we continue to grow our collaboration.

Solving Real-World Challenges Together

Cloud is a key enabler of new digital solutions that have the potential to transform enterprises across a wide range of industry segments.

“However, the availability of the cloud depends on the reach of an agile, reliable network that can connect any location to the cloud and extends the cloud to any location.”

Together with Microsoft, we have successfully supported space-enabled digital transformation providing a reliable network to enterprises and governments of all sizes, in any location.

Taiwan, for example, needed to make sure its first responders have reliable access to their cloud hosted systems during terrestrial network disruptions.  SES, Microsoft, Pegatron and Wave-In Communication demonstrated a private 5G network to the cloud, ensuring that services such as video surveillance and video capture could still be maintained in times of network downtime. Building on this successful demonstration, we worked together with Pegatron and Microsoft to support the Taiwan Ministry of Digital Affairs and Telecom Technology Center enabling resiliency with Azure Private 5G Core, SATCOM, and cloud.

Likewise for a major sporting event in Qatar, SES provided backup satellite connectivity which included 10 Gbps of bandwidth to support mission-critical operations during the event.

In another example, SES, Microsoft and Nokia have demonstrated secure access to the Azure cloud platform over private 5G and SATCOM networks for defense organizations. Building on this capability, SES and Microsoft will continue to work together to develop new solutions to serve government customers worldwide. Several of these solutions involved the Azure for Operators Private 5G solution, which was interoperable with various RAN systems and integrated with the Azure cloud platform.

A Vision for the Future

We are very proud to see the progress we’ve made and the promising developments that SES  has on the horizon, such as the Satellite Communications Virtualization Program, which envisions a fully virtualized satellite communications ground network and an ecosystem that delivers a range of technologies, from software-defined radios and customer edge terminals to new virtual network functions and edge cloud applications.

Going forward, we will continue to develop innovative solutions that combine satellite connectivity, cloud services, private 5G and edge computing. Beyond virtualization, our promise to our customers is our ability to scale while making it easier for them and our partners to leverage the capabilities of the SES-Microsoft collaboration.