Vodafone Cook Islands and Rivada have signed an MoU to provide next-generation telecoms connectivity, powering network expansion and digital transformation in the Oceania region and beyond.

Like most countries and territories in Oceania, telecommunications in the Cook Islands is limited by geographic isolation. Vodafone Cook Islands aims to harness Rivada's Outernet to deploy resilient connectivity for enterprises and government customers looking for scalable and secure solutions for their expanding networks. And with Asia's subsea cables, which carry much of the world's data, increasingly becoming a focal point of geopolitical tensions, the region now more than ever needs resilient infrastructure that is fast, secure and reliable.

The Rivada Outernet is a next-generation low-Earth orbit satellite constellation. When fully deployed, it will provide gigabit-speed connectivity to any point on the globe, without needing to touch the public internet or any third-party infrastructure. Combining inter-satellite laser links with advanced onboard processing and unique routing and switching capabilities, this optical mesh network, in which data stays in space from origin to destination, creates an ultra-secure network with pole-to-pole coverage, offering end-to-end latencies much lower than terrestrial fiber over similar long distances. This allows Pacific islands to benefit from the same high speed, low latency connectivity you would expect in any urban center.

Donald Chew, VP Sales APAC at, Rivada, said: "With more than $14 billion of business globally for our unique LEO network and a growing number of key regional partners, we are seeing a huge uptick in our business in Asia." Chew added: "The Outernet's ability to meet the requirements of Asia's telecoms providers in terms of security, latency, capacity, and coverage will empower the region's telecommunications infrastructure, support national digital strategies, ensure uninterrupted connectivity and expand international bandwidth."

Phillip Henderson, CEO, Vodafone Cook Islands, said: "We are delighted to partner with Rivada to deploy the Outernet, which offers multi-gigabit network performance combined with worldwide reach, enabling us to enhance our connectivity infrastructure and expand services to our outer islands. With next-generation LEO satellite communications, we can empower our remote communities in areas such as online education, health and business services, accelerating technological innovation and economic growth."

Rivada will be at PITA and PTC'25 from 19-22 January, exploring the opportunities for NGSO networks in Asia Pacific and the Oceanic Island region:

• How the potential of LEO can be unlocked for data networks and services and the opportunities for new business models and end-user services
• An ultra-secure network is the ambition for global enterprise and government communications and the dynamic powers of laser communications are key
• Partnering with LEO enables Asia Pacific satellite and telecom operators in search of growth to complement and expand services that cannot be supported by GEO alone

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