Microsoft Corp. said today it’s enabling satellite connectivity on its Azure ExpressRoute private networking service for customers looking to improve the connectivity and performance of their remote facilities.

Azure ExpressRoute is a service that provides a private connection between an organization’s on-premises infrastructure and the Microsoft Azure cloud. It’s generally used by customers that need a faster connection with greater reliability, lower latency and more bandwidth to Microsoft’s data centers, and to ensure better security than what’s offered by public internet connections.

Microsoft’s rival Amazon Web Services Inc. offers a similar service, AWS Direct Connect.

The majority of these private connections are delivered overland through partnerships with telecommunications providers such as AT&T Inc., Verizon Wireless, BT Group Plc. and Equinix Inc., to name just a few.

But Microsoft is unique in being the first to offer satellite connectivity in partnership with three firms, namely SES S.A., Intelsat Corp. and Viasat Inc. Microsoft said ExpressRoute for satellites works by connecting with its partners’ ground stations to Azure via a dedicated private link.

Customers in industries such as aviation and oil and gas are the main target market for this service, Microsoft said. For example, airplanes during flight can only connect with satellites, while the remote nature of oil rigs and other installations means that satellite connectivity is often the only viable option for them as well.

Still, satellite connectivity with ExpressRoute will also be available to Azure Government Clouds, which indicates further use cases such as the U.S. military, for example.

In separate Azure news Monday, Microsoft announced the opening of two new cloud regions in Germany. The new regions, in Berlin and Frankfurt, currently offer access only to Azure cloud services but will expand to include Office 365 and Dynamics 365 by next year.

Image: Microsoft