Amazon Leo partners with Herotel to launch satellite internet in South Africa
Amazon · Herotel
Amazon Leo and Herotel will launch a satellite-internet service, evry, for South Africa in 2027.
what happened
Amazon Leo and Herotel, South Africa's largest fixed-internet provider, announced a partnership to launch a residential satellite-internet service called evry, commercially available in 2027, Amazon says. Herotel, which serves more than 350,000 active customers across 550+ towns via 120 local offices, will handle installation, customer support, and field operations; Amazon Leo satellites orbit at about 590 km and the constellation has 390+ satellites deployed. It is Amazon Leo's first agreement of this kind in Africa.
why it matters
The deal gives Amazon Leo a distribution partner with existing rural reach in a market where nearly a quarter of the population lacks network coverage, per Amazon. ITWeb reports Herotel's integration follows South Africa's ownership-based licensing requirements that Starlink has not met there. For competing LEO operators, it is a template for entering markets with foreign-ownership rules by partnering with an already-licensed local ISP.
for who
Connectivity resellers and LEO operators entering emerging markets
signal-to-noise
quick facts
- Companies
- Amazon, Herotel
- Category
- partnership
- Impact
- notable
- SNR
- 5 / 5
- Event date
- 2026-07-15
- Published
- 2026-07-15 17:33 UTC