ATHENS – Greeks often experience slow and unreliable internet service, leading some to believe that they are using 1G technology. However, New York’s Comtech Telecommunications has successfully tested and validated 5G connectivity over a satellite network.

This achievement was made possible through a collaboration with Athens-based Cloud Signals, in which a commercial 5G node was connected to a mobile network operator’s (MNO) 5G testbed network and transmitted over a satellite link provided by Hellas Sat, according to Satellite Today.

Comtech’s Elevate VSAT solution provided high-speed backhaul services for the 5G satellite-based connection. According to Cloud Signals CEO Christos Papachristos, this was crucial for providing a 5G network for commercial and government maritime vessels.

The next step is to establish a commercial cooperation and launch their service on the market. Greece is seeking to upgrade its network to attract more digital nomads who require fast and reliable service but can work from anywhere.

Ken Peterman, President and CEO of Comtech, stated that “this demonstration showcased our ability to easily blend satellite and terrestrial technologies to deliver 5G capabilities to remote areas that are unconnected or underserved by traditional terrestrial and wireless infrastructures.”

In September 2022, cybersecurity company Surfshark, which provides Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), conducted a survey that found Greece’s fixed Internet to be the slowest in Europe and among the most expensive for relatively poor service.

The survey evaluated five criteria: Internet affordability, Internet quality, electronic infrastructure, electronic security, and electronic government, which the New Democracy government has been accelerating.

According to the 2022 index, Greece dropped one place from 2021 and is now ranked 39th out of 117 countries worldwide. The country only improved in the area of digital governance, which is being given more emphasis.

The report also revealed that an Internet user in Greece must work for 12 minutes a month to afford 1 GB of mobile phone data, which is six times more than what is required in Bulgaria and 149 times more than in Israel.

Greece is ranked 55th out of 117 countries, with poor performance mainly attributed to the slow speed of fixed Internet connections. Greece ranks 20th in mobile Internet speed and 84th in home Internet speed.

In terms of Internet security, Greece ranks first, which is critical for businesses and government agencies that can become targets of increasingly sophisticated hackers.