Alphabet to deploy balloon Internet in Kenya

Nairobi : Alphabet Inc’s Loon said yesterday it would deploy its system of balloons to beam high-speed Internet access with Telkom Kenya from next year to cover rural and suburban populations, marking its first commercial deal in Africa.

Known as Project Loon, the technology was developed by Alphabet’s X, the company’s innovation lab. It has since become Loon, a subsidiary of Alphabet, which is the parent company of Google.

The technology was used by US telecom operators to provide connectivity to more than 250,000 people in Puerto Rico after a hurricane last year.