It looks like O3b (funded by Google, HSBC, and John Malone) is actually building a new satellite Internet infrastructure. They're launching satellites into Middle Earth Orbit instead of Geostationary Earth Orbit to cut the latency in half. The maximum download speed will apparently be 10Gbps. I think the idea is that they'll use this infrastructure as a backbone for ISPs in remote regions.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O3b_Networks,_Ltd.

http://gigaom.com/2008/09/09/google-invests-in-satellite-bas...