14 DAY TRIAL // The tantalizing prospect of getting free Internet wherever you are on the planet may be turning into a reality starting next year, when Outernet plans to put mini satellites into orbit to beam unrestricted Wi-Fi to our devices.
Using the tagline “INFORMATION FOR THE WORLD FROM OUTER SPACE,” the Outernet project is nothing short of ambitious. The idea is to provide “unrestricted, globally accessible, broadcast data to all of humanity for free.”
“By leveraging datacasting technology over a low-cost satellite constellation, Outernet is able to bypass censorship, ensure privacy, and offer a universally-accessible information service at no cost to global citizens. It's the modern version of shortwave radio, or BitTorrent from space,” says Outernet.
Of course, it’s much easier said than done. And I’m not talking about the technology, but the political scrutiny this project will face. Bypassing censorship is not something your government will like to hear, and if you live in North Korea, you can forget about the promise of “a universally-accessible information service.” Chances are they’ll scramble your signal before you even know how to use it.