en.Wedoany.com Reported - GCI, Alaska's largest telecommunications company, announced it will deploy Starlink's dedicated bonded gateways in multiple community hubs including Bethel, Sitka, Kotzebue, and Dillingham to provide network connectivity for thousands of customers.

The bonded gateway technology relies on optical inter-satellite laser links, enabling multi-gigabit connections even in locations without Starlink ground stations. According to a Basenor article, this technology integrates multiple satellite connections into a single aggregated link, serving as a mid-range solution for achieving symmetrical speeds, which GCI and other network providers then deliver to homes, businesses, schools, and healthcare facilities within communities.

This deployment is based on an enterprise reseller agreement between GCI and Starlink reached in 2024, which allows GCI to integrate Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite services into its commercial connectivity products. Starlink has previously installed similar community gateways in Unalaska and Nome, with the Unalaska site reportedly achieving throughput of up to 10 Gbps.

GCI positions the bonded gateways as a complement to, rather than a replacement for, existing fiber, microwave, and satellite infrastructure. Billy Wailand, Senior Vice President of Corporate Development at GCI, stated that serving a state like Alaska requires using all available tools, and LEO-driven gateways enhance network resilience. The company noted that network reliability is particularly critical in Alaska, where broadband services support healthcare, education, and public safety in remote, roadless areas.

Satellite services have made progress in federal broadband benchmarks, but Alaska remains an exception. In the second half of 2025, Ookla Speedtest found that Starlink provided median download speeds of 100 Mbps or higher in every state except Alaska, which consequently failed to meet the U.S. Federal Communications Commission's minimum downstream speed requirements.

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